The Next Step for Scourge
by CrystalMaiden77
Summary: What Scourge chose to do with his life after escaping the No Zone with Fiona, and how he proves to her how much he truly loves her. Basically, it's seeing if he could be tricked and manipulated into becoming more of a hero, all from his desire to compete with Sonic.
1. Chapter 1

Miles, who had been with the Freedom Fighters for ten months by that point and just got found by Scourge in the Great Forest, talked Scourge into going from dreaming of fighting and beating Sonic as the king of Anti-Mobius to going on an adventure to destroy every Robotnik in the multiverse one by one, saving the Eggman in the Prime universe for last. His reasoning was, " I know how much you like being in charge, and that would logically translate to ruling a whole world, but do you really care about that? I never saw you enjoying the paperwork. Running a country isn't really your thing, it's for people who are, uh, very responsible and mature and, you know, not fun, as you'd put it, and that's why you give all the actual planet running work to Fiona. " " So? " Scourge asked kind of defensively, with his hands on his hips.

" Do you really think she likes that? " Miles asked unhappily. By this point, he had long ditched the previous outfit he was wearing, if only to wear a mostly identical version of the same shirt with various shades of blue instead of red, and was wearing glasses that looked like sunglasses that his eyes could be clearly seen past. His dark gray streak of dyed hair was also messier.

Fiona, who was at Scourge's side at the time, admits in annoyance, " No. It's boring. I don't really care about running that planet, it's just paperwork, " and admitted more quietly self-consciously, " And a lot of pressure, " not comfortable with revealing that she felt a moral responsibility to not be a total screw-up running a country.

Miles quickly continued before Scourge could try to make excuses, " You might as well be a figurehead, and at that point that's no different than having any other big intimidating rep, which you already had to begin with. My point is, I know you, and sitting on a throne with nothing to do all day isn't you. You live for the thrills and excitement of taking risks and going on adventures! That's why you did so much zone-hopping that DIDN'T involve fighting Sonic. Remember Litigopolis? I-I did pronounce that right, right? You went there, and only went to Mobius Prime because you were going after Zonic! You were doing all that traveling without needing to risk fighting Sonic at all! "

Scourge asked in annoyance, " What'dya mean, risk? " If Miles wasn't his little brother figure and the first and almost only person to care about him, he'd have lost his temper by now. He couldn't stand being lectured about the way he lived his life and given alternate ideas of what he could do from other people, he got that enough from his parents. " Why were you avoiding him for so long if it wasn't to avoid getting arrested again? You were making the smart decision. He's your only match, anyone else would be easily defeated! That's why you went after him, fora challenge! "

Fiona, getting impatient and feeling like the conversation was going into redundancy, said, " Out with it Miles, stop beating around the bush. What do you want to say? " Miles took a second to work up the nerve, before acting casual and suggesting, " I mean that Sonic's everyday challenge is trying to take down a selfish idiotic mad scientist. THAT'S what he cares about, that's HIS game. The only way you could really prove yourself to be better than him would be to beat him at his own game! After all, he doesn't care HOW many crimes you commit, nothing will change in the way he sees you there. But can you imagine how jealous he'd be if one day you told him that you took down every Robotnik in the multiverse except his?! All from doing things YOUR way. Not restraining yourself like the Freedom Fighters do. " He worried that he was being disloyal to Sonic by saying that, but it was all in the interests of making Scourge stop wasting his life, so he felt like it was worth it.

Scourge said, " You mean their no-killing policy? " He seemed intrigued by the concept, being an extreme vigilante that beat out Sonic's pure heroism in effectiveness, but looked wide-eyed and alert because he wasn't fully convinced yet; after all, this seemed a little too similar to what Sonic did. " Miles answered, " Yes, " while trying to fight back the urge to roll his eyes, as the good half of him was annoyed that Scourge even would oppose it instead of understanding why he would hate himself if he ended someone's life, and the more cynical half of him was irritated that the Freedom Fighters were single-handedly delaying their defeating Eggman by decades purely with that policy, just to avoid making themselves feel bad. It was selfish of them, but at the same time, he was no better in practice than they were.

Scourge put his hand on his chain stroking it considering his suggestion, and then said, " Miles, you might be onto something here. Even if I only iced 10 or 60, Sonic would be really jealous! Of me! About freaking time! The tables should turn, HE should be the one to be bested! " Miles said while smiling nervously, " Yeah! But I-I'm taking no responsibility for you killing anyone, you got that? That's your decision alone. I just suggested taking them down, " with Scourge rolling his eyes looking depressed at how easily he felt guilty after a lifetime of the people on Coconut Island making him feel bad about himself. And now it was worse because with the Freedom Fighters around instead of his late gang, he wasn't encouraged to suppress that guilt anymore. Scourge replied, " I know, I know. That's MY idea. I'm gonna do things MY way! I'll show HIM who deserves respect! I'll go all over the multiverse with her proving how powerful I am, that no Robotnik like the one who put me in that cell will EVER be able to best me again! In fact, I'm gonna go for that one, first. "

As Fiona seemed a little nervous but understood Scourge's reasoning and wanted to stick with him out of loneliness, Miles said, " You mean the one in the universe with Sonia and Manik? The one where Sonic has siblings in a rock band? " Scourge said in confusion, " That's the one who approached me for the plan? " before saying in determination, " Then he's going first! And I'll save the best for last! Tell Sonic I'm givin' him a time limit, and if he doesn't beat his Robotnik in time, I will! Won't THAT be humiliating to him! Nothin' like getting your victory stolen by your evil twin. See ya! " smiling with the last two sentences. With that, Scourge had picked up a kind of excited Fiona and carried her into the giant interdimensional portal Ring to the Sonic Underground universe, and Miles had no plans to tell Sonic what Scourge had said.

Scourge was reflecting on that again as he and Fiona were searching that universe's Robotnik's lab for stuff that could benefit them. It couldn't be anything that they wouldn't be able to carry in their pockets, so they were limited in their options. Fiona had already taken a ray gun from a Swatbot after Scourge destroyed it with a flying sonic kick to protect her. But Scourge couldn't help but feel like she needed more. Having her around was forcing him to carry her whenever he was moving fast so that he wouldn't ever risk leaving her behind and losing the best girlfriend he'd ever had. It was annoying how she did that, forcing him to have his hands full, when he could just run into a base of Robotnik's himself and get the job done by himself with his spindash, without having to stop to put Fiona down first. Just then, in the middle of that train of thought, he found something intriguing in a container and said, " Jackpot! "

Fiona turned around and saw a pair of boots that, conveniently enough, could change size with shapeshifting metal to fit whoever wanted to wear them, and Scourge explained holding some metal projecting a holographic document in front of him, " The document on these things says that they can give you the ability to run at the speed of sound! He must've been plannin' to use these to get himself more evenly matched with his Sonic! Fi, I want you to have 'em. " She said happily, " Really? " She already had an electricity-shooting ray gun to fight robots and paralyze Robotniks with. Scourge replied, " Of course! This way I won't have to carry ya anymore. So you'll finally be able to keep up with me! Now the next step would be getting our hands on some Chaos Emeralds so I could maybe infuse the boot's power into you! Then you wouldn't even NEED the boots! "

He thought to himself with a smirk while Fiona was saying, " Awesome! " that, ' _She's already much better than Sonic's girlfriend ever would be, she'd be able to keep up with me instead of cramping my style, AND can destroy robots by the dozens! All that and I can make out with her! I'd be hard pressed to find a better partner._ " He was taken out of his train of thought when she hugged him and blurted out, " I love ya! "

He hugged back out of instinct and replied, " Thanks, Fi! Love ya, too babe. " The first sentence made Fiona worry a lot that he didn't feel the same way and took her out of her good mood, to the point where the second sentence took a second to sink in for her. The hug ended and she said in surprise, " You do? " remembering the last time she desperately tried to tell Scourge that she loved him, which wasn't a pleasant experience. " Yeah, of course I do! Wasn't it obvious? I must have said it at least once before. " Scourge said casually, confused.

" No, you didn't! Why would you think that? " Fiona asked unhappily. Wondering why he was suddenly in trouble from such a positive sentence, he said, " I said it to Miles all the time. I guess I got confused. " " You said ' I love you ' to your little brother more than me? " Fiona replied looking shocked and jealous. Scourge replied with a serious expression, " He NEEDED it. " " I do too! " she blurted out.

" I know, but he REALLY needed it, Fiona. I was the first person to ever care about him at all. He needed constant reminding that it was even true! If I don't say it back right away, he starts crying. Oh, don't tell anyone I told ya that, " Scourge explained. " Then why didn't you say it back to me? Back at the prison? "

" I'm sorry, alright?! You caught me at a bad time. I was really stressed from the way I was treated in there, and I just assumed you knew, " Scourge apologized looking awkward and regretful.

Fiona was stunned at what just happened, before he continued, " I just assumed you knew. I mean come on, Fi, you know I'm crazy about'cha! You're the best I've ever had! We're so much alike, we're both confident and optimistic and love the thrills of excitement and go by our own rules, not letting some stupid society bigwigs tell us what's up! We're not like Sonic who is ordered around all the time by idiots who just sit in their chairs. You look great and kiss great, you have the BEST laugh! " She briefly blushed at the sheer significance of the fact that he was so crazy about her that he would compliment her on such a minor thing, and he continued, " And the best part is that you like me for me! Remember how accepting you were of me forgiving Miles so easily? "

She remembered. Scourge had just re-conquered Anti-Mobius and become really worried and panicked at learning that Miles had disappeared along with the rest of his old gang. He had ordered the royal guards of the castle Acorn in the living room, " Find him! Hire anyone who will listen, put up a million dollar bounty, and bring him back ALIVE! That's an order! " After the guards had left, Fiona asked, " Why alive, though? He's the one who struck an alliance with the Freedom Fighters and betrayed you! "

Scourge was surprised before nervously lying to save face in front of her, " W-W-Well, obviously, I don't want him to get outta bein' punished! That's why I need him alive, so he can pay! " There was a brief silence, before Fiona replied, " You still care about him, don't you?... Why are you still so loyal to him? " Scourge sighed, hoping desperately that this wouldn't cause her to lose all respect for him since it might hurt his " bad boy appeal, " and explained, " He was the first person who ever cared about me at all. Not even my parents gave a rat's ass. But there he was, outright hugging me and sayin' he loved me! It meant a lot. We spent a whole year together only havin' each other. You don't know how much that meant to the both of us. We were so close, we were perfect! He's like the only real family I had! You can't erase that. No matter what irrational mistakes he made. I don't care what you say or anyone else does, I'm gettin' him back. He can't be dead. And I'm finding out why he betrayed me. "

After a brief silence, Fiona said, " I understand, " and Scourge looked away at the TV in shame. He was really worried at first, but then he could've sworn he saw her crack a smile out of the corner of his eye, and he immediately turned to face her. " You smiled! " he said full of joy, getting up off the couch. " I-I did?... Well, okay, okay. I thought it was sweet! I knew Sonic and Tails were always close, but- " Fiona said awkwardly.

" They were nothing compared to us! AND US. I'm glad you understand, Fi. I thought for sure I'd lose some cred in your eyes for that, because the whole reason you picked me over Sonic was the bad boy appeal! Of course you like everything else too, but that won you over. But now I know that you like me for me., " Scourge said happily.

With that, Fiona, in the present day in the lab of Sonic Underground Robotnik, smiled at remembering that conversation they had months ago. Scourge said with a smile grinning from ear to ear, " You're the best I ever had! You're like my best friend, only I can make out with you! Could you imagine a better partner? I know sometimes I look at other girls- I'm a man, I can't help it - but honestly, I couldn't imagine myself being satisfied with any other girl, no matter how hard I tried. Because you like me for me. I don't have to pretend I don't have a soft side. " With that heartfelt speech that Scourge ended up saying, all of Fiona's lingering worries and doubts about being with Scourge were relieved, and she embraced him with the biggest smile on her face, and kissed him. She loved him now more than she ever would. And while Scourge didn't think he'd be ready until he was 30 to start calling her his wife, it was clear that he wouldn't be happy with anyone else.


	2. Chapter 2

Scourge and Fiona burst into the lab of the Sonic Underground universe Robotnik, causing him to turn to face them in complete confusion going, " What?! How dare you, how, how did you get here?! Swatbots, get- " But before a single one of the robots running up to them could grab them, Scourge recognized the sound their metal clanking made on the floor remembering the last time he was grabbed by a Swatbot and almost thrown into the ocean surrounding the Anti-Angel Island, and spindashed through all of them in a green and black blur, tearing them apart in just a second.

He then smirked, relishing in the piles of scrap metal and oil in front of him showing off as a display of his power, and in how scared the Sonic Underground Robotnik was, backing away from him. It felt so much better turning the tables on him than being in that old position afraid of being drowned by the robot of someone he trusted. Now he was finally getting his revenge. " Remember me?! Leather jacket, spines, sunglasses? You threw me in a cell?! " Scourge said angrily as he walked towards the backing up Robotnik, with his fists clenched brimming with resentment. The only reason he wasn't immediately terminating him was that he thought making a revenge-centered speech would be far more epic and satisfying, and he was always one with a flair for the dramatics.

" You?! B-B-But, how- " the Sonic Underground Robotnik stammered, to which Scourge replied proudly, " I powered up with the power of a giant Chaos Emerald! Now I'm all unique, I don't look like Sonic anymore! The name's Scourge the Hedgehog, now, the REAL Sonic, the most powerful Sonic alive! And now I'm gonna make you PAY for what you did to me! "

With that, Fiona shot him with a ray gun electrocuting him to make him fall to the ground, screaming in pain and unable to defend himself from Scourge, writhing in pain on the floor helpless. While Scourge smirked with his hands on his hips at it, Fiona felt a small amount of discomfort out of fear and sympathy. Sympathy that she found shameful, as she immediately frowned after reminding herself of who that person reminded her of; Robotnik, the man who kidnapped her when she was a child, made her work at a jewel mining camp without a break for days on end, and then imprisoned her, in a place where she spent two miserable years clawing her way out through a tunnel.

Just looking at him made her angry at him for something he had nothing to do with, dragging her right back to the worst part of her past feeling like a helpless little kid again, and then she remembered the ray gun in her hand. She shouted, " You deserve this, kidnapper! " and kicked him as hard as she could to try to stop feeling weak and pathetic, still holding down the electrocute button for the ray gun to keep the alternate Robotnik from fighting back. She had been given strict instructions to never let it go until Scourge would've finished the job.

Scourge hi-fived Fiona with a proud smile supporting her standing up for herself, and then proceeded to lay a beatdown on him with his bare hands. " Put ME in a cell, will ya? Well, your days end here! " he exclaimed, punching the alternate Robotnik while leaning over him sitting on the floor. " Little harsh, isn't it?! "

The sound of Sonic's voice immediately made the two of them look ahead with Scourge's spines practically standing on end, and to the massive relief of Scourge, it wasn't the Prime Sonic, but an alternate version of him who looked badly bruised, sitting on the floor behind a green translucent wall. And sure enough, Sonia and Manic were right next to him, as well as an alternate Tails looking terrified, all trapped in the same roboticizer. Manic commented, " I don't blame him at all, though, the dude deserves it. " and Sonia scolded, " Quiet, " in disapproval of her brother's more lax morality.

She then said to Scourge, " Can you get us out of here? You can take your revenge on him later! And plus, we DID help you _escape_ from that cell, " before smiling a little at how clever she was being. Sure enough, it seemed to be working, as Scourge said, " That IS true, and what better way to spite the old man than letting ya escape? " Fiona looked at him with a cocked eyebrow, wondering if he really was that easy to manipulate. She had been planning to free them herself, and was dreading getting insulted by Scourge for wasting her time doing that for complete strangers, but it turned out that Scourge was going to do it himself, just to spite a Robotnik.

" BUT! I know what you're gonna do. You're gonna stop me from finishin' the job. So I'm gonna save you AFTER, " Scourge said with a clever smile. " After WHAT? " the alternate Tails asked looking really nervous. " THIS! " he replied, and finished off the Robotnik that tried to roboticize him by attacking just below his head with a sonic kick. The alternate Tails then immediately alerted him to his attention by screaming briefly at the cracking sound and the sight of it, which to Fiona's surprise, she wasn't 100% comfortable with either, but promised herself that she'd get used to it. As someone who suffered so much at the hands of Robotnik, she believed in their cause of eliminating every Robotnik in existence more than Scourge ever could, while with Scourge, there was really only one Robotnik he had a real grudge against. Every other one would just be dealt with to rack up a number.

" What? " Scourge responded, completely confused and a little annoyed at being treated like the bad guy. He recognized that look on his face, and it was one of those looks he never wanted to see again. It was the look that Miles had whenever he was reliving one of his most traumatic experiences at the hands of the many bullies who picked on him.

After pulling a red lever that made the wall of the roboticizer lift up to free everyone, he said, " I gave him what he deserved! Shouldn't you all be THANKING me? " pointing to himself with his thumb at the end, thinking, " _I can't believe how ungrateful they're being! Not that I care what these goody-two-shoes think._ "

Looking stunned as Sonia checked for a pulse, SU Sonic replied, " Uh, I guess… It's just, yeesh! That was harsh! You just, _killed_ him! Couldn't you have just, I dunno, tied him up or somethin'? " Scourge snarked with a roll of his eyes, " What, with INVISIBLE rope? " and looked around the room, seeing nothing that could've restrained him. SU Tails was hiding behind Manik, terrified.

SU Sonic stammered, " W-Well, okay, but that ray gun already paralyzed him! Couldn't you have- " " What? Who do ya think could've lifted this tub of lard? And do ya think I'd be having Fi keeping the ray gun pointed to him holding the button the whole time we're running? You're being ridiculous. " Scourge replied in annoyance with a dismissive wave of his hand, and then snapped shouting, " And I didn't COME HERE so you could NAG ME! I do things MY way! And MY way, got rid of him! " with his fists clenched leaning closer to him, making him back up a little with his hands in a placating manner.

This caused SU Tails to yelp, shaking like a leaf, and completely out of his control, Scourge's expression changed to a sad one. No matter how hard he tried to ignore it, the child reminded him of Miles, and a friendship long gone. The fact that this particular Tails was the same age as that Miles back then certainly didn't help, as he looked to be around six years old. Much to his chagrin, they all noticed it, and there was nothing the embarrassed criminal could do to erase that.

He sighed in exasperation and told him gently, " Look, I won't hurt you if you won't hurt me. Why would I? I got no beef with you! You're just a kid! A nice, smart, overly naïve kid, " and thought to himself angrily, " _Who wouldn't join in on the fun like Miles did._ "

SU Tails stared at him in scared confusion for a few awkward seconds, and Scourge tried to reach out to gently rub his shoulder to comfort him, in a complete instinctive reaction. But SU Tails flinched and backed away from him instead, which was heartbreaking. " _That settles it. From now on, I'm not killin' 'till there's no Tails in sight. And maybe nobody else, neither. Don't like them nagging me. My curiosity about what's up is the only reason I'm still here!_ "

Sick of the awkward situation, Fiona tried to change the subject, asking Sonia, " So why were you guys all put in the same roboticizer? That's pretty weird. " Scourge had looked over at her the minute he heard her voice, and was relieved and grateful at her breaking the uncomfortable silence, which was filled with annoying judgment that seemed to choke the air with stifling glares. Sonia saw Fiona as the lesser of two evils right away, since all she had done was paralyze the man, and call him a kidnapper proving that she had a past history suffering at his hands, not to mention she was a girl, which arbitrarily made her seem more likable to her. So she immediately explained, " He was gonna fuse us all together into one huge robot in some sick experiment just to spite us! It was the first time he ever tried something like that. He didn't even know what'd happen to our minds afterwards. "

" How'd you all get captured so easy? " Scourge questioned, and briefly looked at SU Sonic in confusion and dismissal, because as little as he liked to admit it, he still knew that Sonic, any Sonic, was a very capable person with the level of speed he possessed. Sonia replied with her arms crossed, " Sleeping gas, mostly. He snuck up on us while we were distracted by this ' innocent civilian ' that was trapped under a collapsed building? Turned out to be a robot looking exactly like a normal person! It was just to lure us into a trap. "

Hearing about that robot made Fiona look horrified as her mind immediately took her back to when she first saw that robot duplicate of herself. It wasn't scary, per se, since she had no reputation to ruin with no actual friends or family to be hurt by being replaced, but it was the creepiest thing she'd ever seen. Well, until today. But she promised herself she'd keep reminding herself that those Robotniks deserve it. She wasn't comfortable with the idea that any robot duplicates would exist, and hated him even more for making them, glaring at the Robotnik on the floor muttering, " So _he_ makes them too. "

Scourge briefly looked at Fiona concerned, knowing what was preoccupying her, and then snarked, " How the hell were ya plannin' to do it anyways? None of you have super strength or anything! Why didn't 'cha just leave it to an ambulance person who would know how to do it? " Sonia said in irritation with her arms crossed, " First off, don't swear, there's a child here, second, I have super strength, and third, we're not so callous that we would ignore an innocent person crying for help. We didn't know he was a robot, and unlike you, we're not gangsters. Besides, we didn't know how long he'd have left and we thought maybe an ambulance wouldn't arrive in time. We had to be careful! " Scourge groaned rolling his eyes, with Fiona being just as annoyed and resentful as he was at the judgmental attitude of her. " You remind me of Sally. No thanks. I did my job, and I'm outta here! " he said in irritation.

Before Fiona could turn on the giant ring portal generator strapped to her wrist, Sonia exclaimed in fear, " Wait! " and made her stop, which she told herself was purely out of curiosity about what she intended to say. " You gotta escort us out of here! Sonic's too injured to do so, he needs help just walking, and this place is full of robots! You can't leave! " she said in fear, with her expression just barely trying to look angry to mask it. That also reminded them of Sally, but in a more sympathetic way.

Despite that, Scourge said, " Watch me, " stubbornly wanting to spite her for all the nagging she did to him for doing what she should've commended him for. Just before anyone could say anything, an alarm went off having the entire room flash red, with a robotic echoing voice telling the other robots over an intercom about their master's fate. " All units converge on Sector B! All units converge on Sector B! Plot Codename Revenge put into order! "

After that, they all could hear the sound of an army's worth of robots moving down the hallways of the base with loud metal clanks, and the room they were in was still flashing red in an ominous manner that made even Scourge unnerved. SU Tails begged Scourge, " PLEASE, you've gotta help us! Don't _leave_ us! " holding his shoulders before quickly flinching jumping backwards because of the physical contact with him. Both of them were struck speechless by his final sentence; for Fiona, it was from her abandonment issues being triggered at hearing such words, and the fear that if Scourge were to leave him behind, he'd be acting no better than anyone else who ditched her and let her down, like Nicolette after all the time they'd spent bounty-hunting together. And for Scourge, it was because his sentence immediately reminded him of Miles, being at the height of his clinginess in the worst of his fear.

Despite all this, Scourge was still resistant, but it was clear from his intensely uncomfortable expression that he wasn't enjoying the experience. It was frustrating to him, because he wanted to enjoy it. He wanted to make Sonia suffer for the way she treated him like the lowest of scum, thinking, " _She should've been PRAISING me for it! Why would I wanna do anything for this stuck-up bitch?_ " Sonia snapped at him, " Fine! We'll try to leave ourselves! Come on, Sonic, Manic will carry you, and I'll deal with the robots, " and Manic started trying to pick up her brother up clumsily, leaning backwards a little almost falling over in the process.

A scream was heard from the alternate Tails that immediately caused Scourge to snap, and he lunged at the Swatbot that was standing behind the unconscious child, and spindashed straight through it in a protective rage, then proceeded to create a whirlwind around him fending off and destroying two waves of Swatbots converging on him with his spindash.

Fiona asked, " What happened to him?! " looking panicked, and Sonia rushed to his side saying in pity, " He must have been smacked on the head, look at that bump! Come on, Miles, wake up! " Scourge, who had been panting feeling absolutely incensed and waiting for some more robots to come up to him, was snapped out of his anger when he heard what she said, especially that last sentence. " Miles?! " he exclaimed in confusion, and walked up to her asking, " Why not Tails? That's what my girlfriend's version of him is called! "

" Tails? He'd never go for a name that offensive, " she replied while trying to help him up, and Manic said with his arms crossed, " Yeah. I tried, as a cute little nickname, but he didn't go for it. Just made him cry. Poor kid. " Scourge couldn't help but appreciate how Manic was surprisingly similar to him. His speech mannerisms, his more lax morality, his green fur, although it was natural for him, which he envied. All of it made him start to see him as a kindred spirit, although he wasn't aware of it yet. " I take it HE'S been bullied, too? Just like my Miles? " Scourge asked unhappily, looking depressed at SU Tails' condition and the heartwrenching revelation Manic made to him. " _It's all my fault. Would've been so damn easy to just keep an eye on him, "_ he thought angry with himself.

Manic said unhappily, " Yeah, he was! It took him weeks to trust us! We found him at an orphanage after it got all smashed up by Robotnik. He doesn't trust ANYBODY. Kid's got a past. " Sonia snapped sitting on the floor looking at them, " We can chitchat later! Look! " and pointed just as some robots landed on the floor falling from the ceiling, which had started opening up above them. One of those robots was a little too close to Fiona for comfort, and behind her, at that. Scourge's eye twitched and he immediately started wrecking havoc on the robots in the room, shouting, " Everyone against that wall! " pointing to the left, before creating a tornado to sweep all of the robots off their feet, as well as catching any robots that would've potentially come in from above. The tornado smacked all of the robots against the higher part of the walls at sonic speed from the centrifugal force, damaging them all beyond repair.

Fiona, Manic and SU Sonic found themselves cheering for him carried away in the excitement of the moment, with Manic saying, " Awesome! " and SU Sonic saying, " Way to go, Scourge! " which made Scourge start grinning ear to ear, feeling proud of himself, the minute he heard an alternate version of himself express approval of him. Realizing that now it'd be an easy matter to convince him to help them, Sonia reasoned with him, " You really seem to love destroying those robots. Well, there's plenty of more of them where that came from! And you can cause all the destruction you want that way! "

" Sounds exciting! " Scourge said with a smile. But before Sonia could make any plans, he interrupted her, " But I'M making the plans here. Because I do things MY way! Pink girl, you'll carry Miles. Green guy, " Manic said, " Manic , " and Scourge continued, " Manic , you'll carry your brother since he can't run or nothing, Fi, you'll use your ray gun on the robots I'm not facing, so we won't get surrounded, and I'll have all of the robots in this base torn apart in minutes! And I'm not leaving you behind. You'll follow me, I know the way, and when you're outta there, I'm goin' right back in to kill every bot I find. That's where the real fun will begin! " Sonia tried not to smirk pleased at the irony of how he was making the exact same plan she was going to.

The plan went off without a hitch, and they soon found themselves standing outside of Robotnik's base, which was crumbling apart as part of the automatic defense system plan to try to bury the one who defeated Robotnik in rubble. But before Scourge could go do anything else, Manic exclaimed, " Wait! We gotta get Miles to the hospital! Can't you run him there real fast? It'll take like two seconds. "

The minute he looked at the injured Tails in front of him with a red bump on the top of his head, he had already made his decision, but he was awkward about looking like a softie by making it right away, so he put up some token resistance. " What am I, your slave? " he remarked sarcastically, from all the different things he'd been told to do for them, and Sonia teased, " Are you saying you're not fast enough? " with her hands on her hips. Once again, he took the bait, scoffing and saying angrily, " No! I ran across a whole planet multiple times as a fun little RACE! Which way to the hospital? "

She pointed in the correct direction, only letting herself smirk when he looked away, and he lifted the unconscious alternate Tails into his arms, making it so that his arms and head were over his shoulder to better keep him held up. Just looking at his condition made his face fall into a depressed expression, internally beating himself up over not being careful enough, not being fast enough, and not being strong enough to protect him, even though he wasn't really Miles. And Fiona saw it.

" Are you gonna be okay? " she asked with concern, and Scourge quickly remembered how uneasy she was about being left behind. " _She even looks upset when I leave to go to the can,_ " he thought with concern, and simply replied, " Come with me, Fi. There's no reason you should stay here. " Fiona nodded, still not knowing whether to find that treatment sweetly considerate or annoying, and ran alongside him keeping up using her Speed Boots while he brought the kid to the hospital, with just looking at the anguished expression of the unconscious fox in his arms bringing back a painful memory of when she lashed out at Tails, just to get him to leave her alone.

Soon, they found the hospital, as it was pretty hard to miss, being a large building that looked as one would expect, and Scourge started dreading at first the potential reaction of everyone in the hospital to him slowing things down, completely forgetting the fact that he wasn't world famous there. Instead, while the hospital staff and the random patients in the waiting room did see that he looked like a menacing biker gang-guy with his leather jacket and even fangs, they didn't start saying his name and cowering in fear, either. It was confusing, but for the moment, it was a relief, as it would only make things take longer. Fiona explained to the woman behind the desk, " We're here to drop off Miles. Some robot hit him in the head. As you can clearly see, " and gestured to the bump on his head.

The clerk promptly nodded and called for him to be sent to the emergency room, and Fiona and Scourge looked around the room in stunned silence, not used to the fact that they were being treated like regular people. People still looked nervous around them, with their black menacing outfits, but that was about it. It was certainly more convenient, as Fiona commented to Scourge, " For a second I thought we'd have to be answering a hundred questions. ' Why'd you bring him here, why'd you care, what are you planning?! ' " Scourge replied, " Yeah. I forgot these guys don't even know who we are. That was convenient. " He then reluctantly made himself let go of the unconscious Tails to put him on a stretcher, as he tried not to cringe at him half-consciously groaning in pain. After he was taken to the emergency room, there was a silence as he continued staring in his direction after he was gone, and Fiona asked nervously,

" You gonna be okay? " A few seconds passed before Scourge would mutter distractedly, " Sure, yeah, I don't care… " looking annoyed with his hands in his pockets. " It wasn't MY fault a robot hit him, " he grumbled with a dismissive wave of his hand, and anyone could tell that he was blaming himself for it. Fiona reassured, " I know, hun, " and he complained, " It's just _annoying_ everything that went wrong. The hit was perfect, the revenge speech was sweet, but everything after that was like, nag, nag, nag, I'm gonna treat you like the bad guy, and then the kid… Tails… " He looked bitterly depressed at the end, his eyes seeming to water, and then complained,

" Damn it. I'm the fastest thing in the universe, nothing should've touched him with me around! " He was frustrated at everything that went wrong, and even at the fact that he was frustrated at all. He didn't want to care. He wanted to just shrug everything off.

" I shouldn't care what they think. It's just annoying, that's all. It's annoying that I should've been PRAISED for it and of course I happened to not be looking at Miles at the time! " he ranted, and it finally dawned on him that Fiona had been having her arm around him to comfort him ever since his rant first started. He wasn't planning for a rant at all, it just came out in bits and pieces.

" The important thing is, you learned from it, " Fiona reassured him, trying to smile and remain comforting. " What do you mean? " " What are you gonna do differently to make sure this doesn't happen again? " she asked with faith in him. " Well, for starters, I'm gonna force everyone outta the room the next time I try to ice a Robotnik. I don't know how much more of that annoying nagging I can take! And second, if I meet up with another Tails, I'll get him out of danger and THEN get my revenge. I'm the fastest thing alive, I can just run out of there and back in a second. Not that I care about the naïve kid, he just reminds me of Miles, " Scourge explained looking serious.

Of course, the people in the room had overheard their conversation, as one of them exclaimed on the waiting room couch, " Robotnik? So you defeated Robotnik?! " Scourge felt some joy swelling in him ready to be fully enjoyed as he said, " Y-Yeah, with a kick in the neck! And way easier than your own Sonic, you know. I JUST got here! Just ask Sonic, he'll tell ya the whole story. " Everyone in the room cheered, overjoyed at the fact that Robotnik was really gone for good, clapping and laughing while Scourge had the biggest grin on his face. He was smiling so much, he thought his face was going to start to hurt.

And to Fiona's surprise, she found herself smiling too, a smile of satisfaction as she put her hands on her hips to make that more clear; she may have not taken her revenge out on the right Robotnik, but it felt close enough to her, and the more she did it, the closer she might be to no longer feeling trapped and helpless like that little girl in the camp, because no more Robotniks would exist, and they'd all just be weak little feeble targets who had no more power over her. At least she hoped so. " What's your name, son? " the fox Mobian man on the couch asked.

Unfortunately, the " son " at the end of his sentence set him off, reminding him of the father he barely had. " _How dare he!_ " he thought immediately, and snapped, " I'm Scourge the Hedgehog the BEST Sonic, and I'm not your ' son, ' I'm NOBODY'S son. I have no father! And besides, the bastard wouldn't even be cheering for me if he knew this. " The whole room went quiet in an awkward silence, with everyone knowing immediately the kind of father issues he had and looking at him in pity. And it was even more unbearable for Scourge himself, feeling like he just looked pathetic in front of a whole crowd of people with a verbal outburst that normally didn't make it so obvious what his issues were. He usually kept that kind of thing to himself.

Fiona reflected on the fact that if this had happened in front of her when she first started being interested in Scourge, she would've reacted more negatively, but seeing it after her initial feelings of " bad boy attraction " had developed and matured into falling for him, only had her want to comfort him. She understood him so well by that point, and already knew that he was more than just some bad boy; he had all of Sonic's good qualities hidden beneath it to appreciate.

Trying desperately to rectify the situation, he did what he always did to save his pride falling back on old ways, saying his ears lowered unhappily, " Just gimme your money, " but his heart wasn't into it. He had muttered it bitterly under his breath, his arms crossed looking away from him. And after what he just said, not to mention what he did for his planet, the man actually felt like giving him some, handing him what he pretended was all of his money.

" That'll s-serve as compensation for demeaning me like that. 50 bucks, that oughta do, " he said in annoyance, still embarrassed from being the target of such pity, and wondering why he wasn't going after everyone else in the room in anger before rationalizing it away as not wanting to lose what was left of their admiration for him.

He walked out of the hospital with Fiona following behind him holding his hand, and said, " Come on, Fi, we can find some robots to trash and criminals to mug, get ourselves some money for a hotel. " Fiona nodded, being silent for a few awkward seconds as she internally debated over whether she should comment on what happened earlier and then decided that she'd have nothing to say that would be worth it. How would she even phrase it without annoying him anyways? A good girlfriend would keep quiet, she reasoned, and let him just move on. Trying to make it easier on him, she was the one to suggest, " Why don't we stay on this planet for a couple weeks and see if the kid recovers and stuff? Or at least go visit it every day after our daily hits! It's no big deal. He reminds you of Miles, " and then said very quietly under her breath, " and he reminds ME of Tails. "

Scourge heard that, but kept silent about it, understanding that a long time of emotional attachment to a friend couldn't completely dissolve that easily. That was why he was able to forgive Miles, so he wasn't one to talk on that front. " Good idea, Fi, " he said unhappily, knowing that he would be full of stress and worry that wouldn't really go away until he'd confirm that the fox had fully recovered, and then tried to act more natural saying proudly, " Glad I thought of it! " to which Fiona rolled her eyes with a smile.


	3. Chapter 3

After leaving the Sonic Underground Universe, Scourge and Fiona traveled to another Robotnik's base, this one in the Film Noir universe, and took him down with extreme prejudice. Scourge had no real hard feelings towards this particular one because he hadn't put him in a cell, but he still contributed to beating him up when he could've easily ended it in one easy blow, purely because he thought it'd be more fun that way. Fun, that was the idea. But for Fiona, it wasn't about fun. It was about asserting her power over someone who at least looked and acted like the man who made her suffer so much and helped make her the way she is today. As a result, despite her left hand being always occupied with holding down the paralyzing electrocution button on the ray gun, she managed to be the most vicious attacker, kicking him and hitting him with one hand in her desperate attempt to get over her fear, until finally, the job was done. It didn't feel like a phenomenal accomplishment, considering how many other Robotniks were left. To them, it was just raising a number, and now they were done for the day, and could spend the rest of the day doing whatever they wanted.

Before they would leave the base entirely, Scourge noticed a small airship in it, and said, " Hey, let's take a look! " out of curiosity. The two of them found from the onboard computer's display that the airship was set to automatically send the maximum of two people in it to a small island. Fiona said with her hand on her chin, " Maybe that was his next destination for a plan. " Then Scourge pressed a button below the screen with Fiona saying nervously, " What are you doing? " and some text appeared on the screen. Scourge said, " Operation Rainfall. It's a plan to create a bunch of _acid_ rain over Cocoa Island. Don't see what he'd have to gain in it, but he'll never get to do that now. Wait, Cocoa… Like, Coconut Island? " He almost gasped, before regaining his composure and looking serious and determined. " We've got to get to that island. " He pressed the button to activate the airship, and the roof of the room above them opened up as the airship started to hover out of the room with magnetic repulsion and start flying.

Fiona was unclear on all the details surrounding Scourge's childhood brother figure, and the ones he did tell her she didn't always remember, but she did remember that Miles used to live on an island, and with this seeming to be an island Scourge was familiar with, there was only one explanation.

" You wanna pay a two-tailed fox a visit? " she said casually with a smile, trying to make it clear she was being accepting of Scourge for who he was. " You're lucky you said fox, Fiona, " Scourge replied bitterly staring ahead. " What else would I say? Relax, hun! " Fiona said a bit nervously. " I know, I know. You'd never call him something like that, force of habit. A-Anyways, " Scourge replied, feeling awkward about his mistake, before regaining the attitude that was expected of him, sitting on a chair with Fiona already sitting down next to it, and saying with a confident smile, " We're just takin' a little luxury cruise, is all. Just a trip to go visit a place, and see if there are any bozos who deserve our _attention._ It's no big deal. " Fiona smiled and rolled her eyes at how transparent his rationalizations were, and decided to play along. After all, it could be fun, and at least it was something exciting to do.

After the airship arrived at the island, it landed on a beach with a forest leading up to it, and Scourge and Fiona left the airship and ran out of it to explore the island, Fiona keeping up with him using her newly acquired speed boots. Sure enough, Scourge's instinct was right, as before long, they heard the sound of a familiar child's voice screaming in the distance, and ran right up to it to see what was going on. An alternate version of Tails was being bullied by a crowd of angry villagers, who were insulting his second tail calling him every insult for it under the sun.

Much to Scourge and Fiona's surprise, the terrified fox child had the power of ice at his disposal, frantically using it left right and center, in a way that was sloppy, haphazard and unskilled, but powerful. There were already two villagers who were trapped from the neck down in ice, and three more who were pinned to trees by icicles in the edges of their shirts and pants, while the kid was sending ice all over the place in a freezing water current. But it wasn't from someone trying to victimize them, it was from a 4-year-old mage who was desperately trying to defend himself in his panic.

At first, he was handling himself pretty well despite being outnumbered, which was why Scourge and Fiona were choosing to hide behind some bushes and watch the show, but things soon went from bad to worse when two different people, a fox and a deer Mobian, grabbed his arms and tails from behind while he was distracted fending off someone in front of him and held him to a tree, pulling his arms back towards it with the fox holding the left ones and the deer holding the right ones. This left him panicking and defenseless, and about to be attacked, as a strong-looking wolf Mobian with black fur ran towards him with a satisfied smirk, and punched him, giving him a shiner.

Scourge instantly snapped at that and ran into the Mobian in a rage punching him at the speed of sound to send him flying. With no regard for any of the other people around, only not openly killing them because the kid might not be able to handle the sight of it, Scourge then went up to the two people restraining the FN Tails and smacked their heads together, and Fiona hit the one on the right with her paralyzing ray gun to keep him from causing her boyfriend any harm while he knocked out the one on the left, and then sent the both of them flying. Then finally, he ran around the rest of the prejudiced villagers in a blur to create a tornado around them, lifting them up and away from the Tails who could only watch.

" Finally! They won't be comin' to bother you again if they know what's good for 'em! " Scourge said proud and relieved that not much harm had come his way. The minute he saw how he was shaking in fear looking terrified, he remembered how Miles had panicked at first meeting him, even though he had just saved his life, and he wondered what steps he could take to immediately reassure him, especially after the kid shrieked a little and froze the two of them to the ground by the feet shouting, " No! Don't come any closer! "

They tried to walk, but they couldn't, because as Scourge pointed out, " The kid hasn't just frozen our footwear, the ice reaches all the way down underground, too! Nice technique! " to the immediate confusion of the nervous Tails, who slightly lowered his arms which were pointed in his direction. Fiona was dumbfounded that in the middle of her being worried and scared of what the kid might do, Scourge was able to remain unintimidated and act friendly to him anyways. He was certain no Tails would ever kill anyone, on purpose anyways. Even Miles hadn't.

" A compliment? " he said quietly to himself in confusion, his eyes darting all over the place looking down and away from them searching his mind for the socially expected response. " T-Thank you? " he said, as the ice trapping Scourge in place melted away freeing him. He exclaimed, " Huh? How'd that happen?! I didn't tell it to do that! Did I? " Scourge then smiled saying casually, " Well, maybe it's 'cause deep down you knew I wasn't gonna hurt ya! I DID scare off your bullies after all. Now, would ya mind freeing my girlfriend, there? I know you don't mean us harm. That's why you went easy, and only froze our feet. "

FN Tails looked all wide-eyed in realization that his subconscious had indeed guided his magic in that way for that very reason, and asked nervously, " Why did you help me? You can clearly see I've got two tails! Who would help a mutant?! " still with his feet firmly on the ground in a fighting stance, ready to refreeze them at any time. Fiona reassured him, " We don't care about that! If anything, we think it's cool! No pun intended. " " So you don't think I'm a, a, d-demon? " FN Tails replied nervously, whispering the final word. " What, no! That's stupid. Just a cute little kid, " Fiona replied, and noticed the ice melt away with the air feeling warm around her, as the kid completely lowered his arms.

Scourge relaxed his shoulders at seeing that and asked him, " So where'd ya learn to use magic like that? Looks pretty cool. " FN Tails replied, deciding to warily play along and see if he could prove himself right about his suspicion, " I just did it on instinct when some people tried to kill me. It was a freezing cold blizzard out, and I guess I had wished I could take that to my advantage. " Fiona simply commented, " Cool, " and Scourge looked serious asking, " How long have you been out in the woods being treated like this? " with a look in his eyes that implied he was planning revenge. The kid noticed that look, and became scared again, explaining to humor him,

" S-Since a few _months_ ago. I _used_ to live at some foster home, where people used to beat me up, so I ran away because I couldn't take it anymore. Then I realized I had never lived on my own before. Didn't think that one through. I've been doing what I can to survive ever since. " He added with his eyes downcast and head lowered in shame, " Even _stealing_. "

" The bastards. Don't worry, buddy. I'll make the island pay for what they did, " Scourge said to him in the most quiet reassuring voice Fiona had ever heard from him. Not even when she occasionally woke up crying early in the morning and was soothed to sleep in his arms after a nightmare did she hear him be that comforting, although it was very close. Unfortunately, what he said only made the kid even more afraid of him, reminding him of the violent way he dealt with his bullies and how they might be dead for all he knew, and Fiona, seeing disaster waiting to happen, reassured him with concern,

" It's okay, now! We're not gonna hurt you. I don't think we've really introduced ourselves, now, have we, hun? " Scourge felt self-conscious of what it implied about him that someone as famously egocentric as him still hadn't even told him who he was and was instead instinctively focused on trying to be nice to him, nice like Sonic, but snapped out of the impending identity crisis when Fiona put her hand on his shoulder.

He explained with a grin, " That's right! I'm Scourge the Hedgehog, the fastest lawbreaker alive, and this is Fiona, my girlfriend. We're here visiting the island for the day out of curiosity, and we were in the middle of explorin' it when we, well, found out what was happening to you, " with the grin becoming forced at the end.

" So what are you gonna do now? " the kid asked suddenly, his curtness surprising them. " I mean, you're only on the island temporarily. What does it matter that you saved me once if I might die tomorrow anyways? You're not gonna be my friends after this. " Scourge replied clumsily with a smile, " At least we did! Besides, you're more than capable of handling yourself, and I'm certain you'll meet someone that'll wanna be your friend sooner or later. Only so many people can look at a cute kid like you and not wanna adopt you. "

Scourge knew that it was possible that the Sonic of this universe was destined to show up and meet him in the same way that he met his own Tails, and didn't think that he should ruin the surprise, but unfortunately, him not telling him this didn't make his cheeriness seem understandable. It felt to the kid like the universe was mocking him, causing him to tear up from disbelieving him, and say with a cracking voice, " You're gonna leave me behind, struggling to survive on this island, and you STILL smile at me?! "

Fiona recognized the abandonment issues this version of Tails might have just from what he said, exclaimed, " We'd never do that! " getting Scourge's attention right away. She went down more to his eye level and put her hand on his cheek to reassure him as he instinctively backed away more so that his back was right up against the tree. " Look, you're a sweet kid, " she started to say, but with every passing second, she became more and more nervous and uncomfortable at the fear in his eyes, and soon in a moment of self-awareness, focusing on what she was seeing, she realized that it was more than that.

She was once in the exact same position, doing the exact same thing, and a memory flashed before her eyes of her slapping Tails saying that she was teaching him to stop being too trusting. As if it was for his own good, in some desperate way, making it somehow justified, when in reality she only did it to lash out and make him stop trying to convince her not to go with the only person other than him who trusted her anymore. He was making her conflicted and uncomfortable and afraid. But he still didn't deserve it. The image of what she did the last time she was doing something like this flashed in her eyes for just a split-second, but it was stressful enough to instantly make her pupils shrink and her expression become scared as she imagined herself slapping him, and the reactions of Scourge and him afterwards.

Terrified of the possibility that she might make that mistake that again without thinking, and to much worse consequences, she embraced the Tails in front of her in a heartbeat, holding him close in a warm soft hug as she breathed deeply to reassure herself and slow her rapidly beating heart. " I'd _never_ hurt you, " she reassured him sadly right away with her eyes closed, focusing on the sensation of the hug, almost whispering to avoid her voice cracking, and completely forgetting that Scourge was there witnessing it all. Her reaction all happened in a second, with her putting her hand on the child's soft furry face, looking scared from a memory, and hugging him. The child sighed happily relaxing his shoulders after a few seconds of complete confusion, finally accepting the fact that someone could care about him, even if they might not always be there for him.

" Mind if I join in? " Scourge finally decided to say after a few seconds of staring in silence awkwardly trying to think about what to say. He knew because of why she was reacting that way that she'd get startled from any response from him, and wanted to make it clear with a friendly if awkward tone that she was still his girlfriend and wasn't in big trouble. He'd always suspected she'd have regret for that anyways, and asking her to talk about it might only lead to trouble. Fiona immediately opened her eyes at hearing Scourge and remembering that he was there, and it took a second for relief to set in as she said, " Uh, go ahead, " as Scourge sat next to them and put his arms around them, jumping at the opportunity to get some of the affection he could never have in his youth.

A few seconds later, the three of them stood back up with FN Tails being calm and reasonable at last, and Scourge, after saying with a smile, " There's someone I think you should meet, and better now than later. We'll get you off this island and then you'll finally have someone looking after ya, " And he was now faced with the unenviable problem of having to explain why he was leaving the dimension without him. The disappointed look on the kid's face wasn't pretty, and Scourge and Fiona tried to think of it in terms of " annoying " rather than admit that it outright made them feel guilty. " Why can't I come live with you? " he asked, thinking it wasn't fair.

Fiona sighed heavily, and Scourge explained unhappily, " I'm not even _from_ here. At _all_. I spend every day traveling to other universes, " briefly showed him his interdimensional ring summoner, and continued, " And believe me, I'd love to take you with me, in fact I'm fighting back the urge to just do that, but if the Zone Cops notice you go missing from the universe you belong to, that's just gonna give them even more reason to come after me. I'm lucky I haven't seen them go after me yet at all since I escaped their prison! And I've met a version of you from my own universe. He's my best friend, actually, and acts a lot like you. " The two-tailed fox said all wide-eyed, " Does HE have two tails, too? Does he know how I feel?! " Not wanting to respond to that since the kid leaving his own universe to go be buddies with Miles wasn't what he wanted, he said,

" Anyways, what that _means_ is, I know for a fact that your own Sonic, your own version of me, is the perfect friend for you, and is probably destined to come find you here anyways. It'd be weird if I came along and just scooped you up before he ever could so you could go around watching us offing Robotniks! There's no way you'd feel right about that, it'd just fr-I mean, make you scared of us. " He took care not to say the word freak in front of him.

Stunned and overwhelmed by the information he was taking in all at once, FN Tails said nervously, " Offing Robotniks? " Scourge then explained full of pride and excitement, " Yeah, exactly! I've made it my _personal_ _goal_ to spend _every_ day killing off at least _one_ Robotnik, until one day, I'll have taken down them all! " He then said more quietly with resentment looking away, " That'll show _him_ , thinking he's so much better than me! " before continuing, " B-But clearly you're not gonna be comfortable with that for some reason, even though they deserve it. You're not vengeful enough, so you'll just end up miserable and wanting out. I've seen it happen before. " FN Tails was speechless, before saying looking stunned and intimidated,

" How could the nicest people I've ever met be so, violent? " Of course, he immediately was terrified of retribution for insulting them without thinking, and Fiona quickly interrupted his thoughts with, " We'll warp you out of this dimension and then warp you in front of the house of your _own_ version of Sonic, I mean, _Scourge's_ counterpart here. He's blue, just so you know. You won't really be cheated out of anything, he'll be just as great of a friend as Scourge would! And hell, maybe we'll come to visit you, and hang out sometimes! You want that? " She smiled nervously towards the end, secretly longing to just hug him again wishing it was Tails and frustrated with herself for even having that regret at all. " A-As long as I don't have to _kill_ anyone, I'd love to hang out, " he replied, finally accepting their decision because it was clear that their moralities were too different.

Scourge asked in exasperated annoyance, " What's wrong with killing Robotniks, anyways? You know they deserve it. The _dumbasses_ , " saying the final word to rationalize his targeting of them; as far as he was concerned, he wasn't doing it to fight villains like a hero, he just thought the way they were going about being villains was stupid, putting their own planets on a time limit. They deserved to be punished for their idiocy, but he held no grudge against them for being evil, because he had no personal investment in the planets they were ruining. He couldn't care less, he hoped.

Not planning on going beyond a sentence at first, the little fox replied sadly, " I deal with people who want to kill me every day, I don't wanna prove I'm no better than them. Even if it doesn't prove that, I don't wanna do the same thing they do and give them any sort of proof that I'm the monster they think I am. Even if they'll never know, they'll always be in my head. I'll think about how they'd react to me, like they're always there scrutinizing my every decision and mistake. I'd never stop going back to that moment and thinking that they're right. I know it's irrational, I know it's crazy, but- "

" It's okay. You're just like Miles. He thinks like that, too, " Scourge replied in annoyance, cutting him off before he could start rambling and insulting himself like he did too. The more he heard that argument against killing from people, the more it seemed to gain credibility, and the more he resisted believing in it, because if he did, he'd never end up getting rid of every Robotnik. Then what would he brag to Sonic about? Not to mention he might end up regretting what he did, when he couldn't undo any of it, and he was afraid just at the thought. What would that do to him? If he accepted all that guilt for everything he did, the weight of it would make him collapse, and he refused to suffer that humiliation in front of anyone. Could simply getting Robotniks thrown in prison be just as satisfying? All of this he pondered as he brought the alternate Tails out of his dimension and then back, to his own version of Sonic, with Fiona holding his arm, going through the motions doing it without much conscious effort as he was distracted.

Since he was distracted, Fiona stepped in ringing the doorbell of the house and saying for him, " Don't be shy. Just tell him your life story, he'll be hugging ya in minutes! See ya later! "

" WAIT! _Stay_ here while I talk to him! _Please!_ " the kid begged them all of a sudden, immediately getting Scourge's attention. Scourge sighed heavily, thinking that the conversation would be long, boring, and require too much explaining, and not to mention would involve the other Sonic poking fun at how his evil twin was doing something nice. And on their second meeting, at that. " You heard him, Fiona. YOU stay here. I'm waiting outside until you're done, " he said in exasperation. He quickly realized his potential mistake at Fiona's hurt expression and said, " I'll be right here when you come out, I promise. I just think _you_ should do the talking since it'd be less awkward for _you_. " He also had plans to return to the island with Fiona after all of that and reduce it to a wasteland. " _NOBODY treats a little kid like that and gets away with it, especially not Tails!_ " he thought.

Just before Fiona could protest since she was feeling nervous, the door opened with FN Sonic saying hello and Scourge ran away in a blur, leaving her and an alternate version of Tails to discuss things with the blue hedgehog wearing a gray detective suit and hat right in front of her. She had to fight back the sinking feeling of overwhelming anxiety and fear of abandonment and have faith that Scourge would come back, and ignore the paranoid worry in the back of her mind that he was ditching her because she proved she regretted the way she treated Tails, and both her and FN Tails smiled very nervously at FN Sonic, trying to work up the nerve to start talking to him. Fiona was normally the opposite of socially awkward and timid, in fact she was overly gutsy if anything, it was just uncomfortable since she would be talking to a Sonic, while doing the right thing. How much could she deviate from being a " bad girl " villain until she didn't meet the standards anymore? She thought, " _What if I'm not cool anymore? Oh damn it, I've gotta stop worrying like this. Talk, Fiona, talk!_ "

" H-Hi there, uh, " Fiona said to a very confused-looking Sonic with a huge fake smile, forcing herself to act overly cheerful to hide how uncomfortable she was. She didn't call him Sonic right away despite knowing his name out of the paranoid fear that she'd only be embarrassing herself by getting him confused that she knows his name already; she didn't know how famous or not he was in this little universe. " Sonic the Hedgehog, " she was told, and continued with nervous fake cheerfulness, " And I'm Fiona! There's someone I'd like ya to meet! His name's Miles, he's an orphan. He got bullied a _lot_. Can I use your bathroom? "

At the end, she internally congratulated herself on coming up with the genius excuse to not spend as much time explaining to him on the fly, only to quickly feel ashamed and almost disgusted with herself since this could be perceived as abandoning him by forcing him to be alone with him. She tried to ignore the kid's pleading look of fear telling herself, " _It's for his own good,_ " remembered that it was the exact same reasoning as when she made her biggest mistake, and added to the thought, " _For real this time. It's better for the two to talk alone, it's more natural them becoming friends that way._ "

" W-Well, okay, " he replied in confusion, feeling sorry for Fiona's confusing nervousness and the kid's trembling at seeing him. " Good! By the way he has ice magic. How's THAT for a conversation starter?! Gotta go! " Fiona said with a smile, and ran into the house in a red and black blur before he could question her on it. She rushed into the room with a toilet in it immediately to the left of the living room, closed the wooden door and sighed in relief sinking to the floor with her back against it. With any luck, she could get away with hiding in the bathroom until the two of them would be completely finished talking, and only have to talk to him in a brief explanation of who she was and how she met him.

It wasn't that she hated the hedgehog or anything, she thought he was perfectly fine, or at least assumed for a reason that she wasn't sure of since she thought she would resent _any_ Sonic other than Scourge on sight. From her experience, she should, because Sonic represents to her a traitor, someone who she thought cared about her only to look down on her for being forced to steal for food and water and stop being grateful for everything she did for him. And yet, perhaps because enough time had passed, she didn't hate THIS, unrelated Sonic. She hoped she wouldn't always feel that conflicted. All she knew for sure anymore was that she loved Scourge.

" You put me in a VERY awkward situation there, you know that?! " Fiona said to Scourge in an angry scolding whisper pointing at him with one hand on her hip outside of the house. " It would've been even more awkward for ME! I'm his evil twin! Don't you think he would've been pointing out how weird it is that I'd help the kid?! " Scourge yelled back, feeling like the victim. " Yeah, but… " Fiona said awkwardly, not sure if she should tell him. " But what? " he asked still irritated with his arms crossed. " It was an alternate version of SONIC! I wasn't comfortable talking to him all friendly like we were old pals, " Fiona confessed awkwardly.

" Makes sense, I guess. Probably reminded you of old times. Not that it matters much since you know you're happier with me, " Scourge replied nonchalantly. Fiona said lovingly with her arms around his neck, " Of course I am! It's so much more exciting, after all. Especially after we got rid of this world's Robotnik, there'd be nothing exciting to do if I stayed here. " Scourge, who had put his arms around her back instantly, said casually, " _Exactly!_ Being with a Sonic was probably torture after _this_ ' bad boy. ' "

Unfortunately, he immediately spotted the uncertainty in her expression before she could fake agreement, and asked to clarify, " Right? " Realizing she had been caught for good, Fiona reluctantly said as they let go of each other, " H-He was fine. Just like any other person. It just made me nervous since he wasn't you, and he didn't have a reason to trust me. But he still treated me like just like any other person. I was expecting _nothing_ but _suspicion_. But he was more confused than anything. " She tried to sound as resentful as she could by the second to last sentence, hiding the embarrassing feeling of shame that was weighing down on her.

" Suspicion? What, because you're dressed all badass-like? You know Sonic's all prejudiced against criminals. It's not your fault, " Scourge said, briefly caressing her back and head casually in affection. " No, i-it's because he never met me before, that's all. Though obviously if he knew I was dating his evil twin, he wouldn't have a reason to trust me anyways, " Fiona said, and Scourge was annoyed at detecting an ashamed tone in her voice.

" Why should that matter to you? Who cares what he thinks? He's not me, he's just some stranger. And a _totally_ inferior Sonic at that. If someone doesn't trust you when you want them to, they can go screw themselves. Especially if that hurts you! Fi, the only one whose opinion of you matters is _ME_ , don't go beatin' yourself up, " he told her in a serious tone and expression, gently putting his hand on her cheek at the end. He was getting worried about her potentially getting the same self-doubt and hesitation as Miles, and made a plan to try to counteract that the best he could later.

" Thanks, hun, " Fiona said full of appreciation, but with a smile that was nervous and distracted. " Come on, don't be upset. Smile for real! What's stoppin' ya? " Scourge asked cheerfully, secretly impatient at how long it was taking to comfort her like that. She was reminding him of Miles, and not in the good way, the exhausting way that was the hardest part of being friends with someone as troubled as him.

" How's about we go visit that Tails with the head injury now? " Fiona brought up to change the subject. Scourge said, " Of _course_ we should! But first thing's first, " and kissed her six times all around her face, not wanting the moment to end so quickly and wanting to at least end it off with a bang. " Oh, get a room, " a neighbour taking out the garbage complained, jealous at seeing the two of them. Scourge and Fiona smirked at the racoon Mobian who said that, and Scourge said, " We WILL! Good luck with _yours!_ " sarcastic at the end, before using the interdimensional teleporter to warp away with her to the shock of the man who saw it.


	4. Chapter 4

" He's already checked out of the hospital, " Fiona was told by the clerk at the hospital about the Sonic Underground Tails. This caused a relieved Scourge to ask, " So where is he now? Where's he live? " There was a brief silence from the clerk hesitating at the idea of giving that address to an obvious criminal, but after Scourge menacingly reminded him with his arm on the counter, " I took down Robotnik, remember, " the outlaw couple was given the address and some directions, and ran out of the hospital and through the rest of the city. On the way there, Scourge bumped into the very edge of a kid in a coat harmlessly causing him to spin around in a circle comically, and complain while dizzy, " Watch where you're going, jerkass! "

Naturally, this caused the two criminals to stop, and Scourge glared at the quickly regretful kid yelling, " Hey, loudmouth! " before noticing the DS in his hand. " Give it to me, " he growled at him quietly in tranquil fury, only not trying harder to take it by force out of the fear that he'd just break it. The kid gave it to him shaking in fear, and Scourge felt the urge to verbally justify his action, when normally he thought he was always justified in taking what he wanted from people.

" There's a _hurt_ kid just outta the hospital who deserves this more than you, " he grumbled in resentment, as Fiona and the kid stared at him wide-eyed for his less-than-evil response, which for a reason annoying to Fiona, still wasn't 100% enough to keep her from looking back to that whole moment with irritation. Justification or not, he still robbed an innocent kid on the street just for insulting him.

Soon, they reached the house that SU Tails was staying at, and Scourge rang the doorbell, causing the door to be answered by Sonia, who looked surprised and a little apprehensive at seeing him. " What are you doing here? " she asked. " I wanted to see if Miles was okay, " Scourge answered. " F-Fine, I know how worried you were last time. Come in. Down the left hall, it's the third door on the left, " Sonia said reluctantly, still not trusting someone who killed someone in front of her. She thought, " _I wouldn't be able to stop him anyways. Better to just avoid getting hurt._ "

Scourge and Fiona ran up to the entrance to the kid's room in a blur, only not going into it right away to avoid startling him, and after a brief two seconds of them standing there, Scourge silently urged Fiona to be the one who would go announce their presence to him because she was the most harmless-seeming one of them. She said with a worried smile, " Hey, Miles? " causing the fox with the bandaged head to look up at her from watching the TV across from his bed, and say in confusion, " Huh? F-Fiona? " She smiled walking up to him saying, " We just wanted to check to see if you were okay. My boyfriend here was really worried about you, " before sitting next to him on his bed.

Scourge, feeling a little embarrassed by that last sentence but thankful that _he_ at least didn't have to say it, went into the room with her and said, " Yeah. And I wouldn't be able to stop worryin' until I'd see you recovered. You alright, no permanent damage? " He went up to the worried kid who nodded at his question, and sat next to him, and gave him the DS he was holding, saying, " I got you a gift. It's fun! It'll make staying in bed with a headache a lot easier on ya. My brother told me there's nothing worse than being hurt for weeks with nothing to do. "

He put the DS on the nightstand as the kid looked at it in curiosity, and said with his arm around him, " I-I'm sorry this whole thing happened. I should've been able to prevent it, but when that robot was about to hit you, I wasn't _looking_ at ya. I just wanted you to know that. For _some_ reason. "

SU Tails was nervous around him, but he soon appreciated the amount of compassion he was being shown and the affection he was just given, especially from someone who normally no one would expect it from. Fiona said to reassure Scourge, " Well, it's not healthy to keep something all bottled up inside, so it makes sense you'd feel better telling him about it. " SU Tails then chimed in with a cute smile, " Thanks for all the help, Scourge. I mean it, escorting me and my friends out of there, getting me to the hospital so fast, none of us would be alive if it weren't for you. And while you might not be sure about it, you did the right thing. You should be _proud_. "

The second to last sentence clearly made an impact on Scourge, who had almost the same look on his face as when Sonic told him he acted like him whenever he showed compassion and did something nice, that distraught look full of worry, self-doubt, confusion and crisis over who he was and wanted to be. Fortunately, after Fiona caught that expression, she interrupted it to try to keep him from freaking out and doing anything stupid. " You know, we met an alternate version of you? " she said to SU Tails, getting Scourge's attention immediately because he wasn't sure if telling him that was a good idea. He'd just want to meet him. She continued, " And he can summon ice and control it whenever he wants! Yeah, he was throwing ice and freezing people left right and center, trying to defend himself from a bunch of bullies. "

" Really? What'd you do? " he replied all wide-eyed and fascinated. " Got him to meet his own version of Sonic. The two really hit it off! " Fiona told him cheerfully, and found herself pretty proud of herself by the final sentence. " S-So are ya mad at me? " Scourge asked unhappily to get the attention back on him, since he was the one who wanted to go check on him in the first place. " I shouldn't be feeling like this when it was that robot that hit you. But it's just so frustrating, I should've been able to prevent all this. I mean, I am the fastest thing alive after all! " he continued, trying to ignore how irritated he was with himself.

" No, of course I'm not mad. It wasn't your fault I moved from where I last was, and you made up for everything right after. In fact, uh, I know we're not friends, but, may I give you a hug? " the injured Tails said with a smile at first and timidly at the end.

Scourge jumped at the chance and hugged him, and enjoyed the warm soft embrace, relishing in being so appreciated and respected. But when the hug ended, he only got the worry back again as he remembered what Sonic had said to him, and the fact that he had been doing the right thing, a lot actually. He thought, " _What would Sonic say if he saw me do that? ' Aw, you're not so bad after all! There's still hope for you yet! Maybe you'll be a lot more like me someday! '_ " with Sonic's voice echoing in his mind at the end.

The kid asked nervously, " What's wrong? You were just smiling a second ago, " noticing the look of distress on his face, and in an effort to try to get some comforting answer, Scourge asked, " Fiona, can I talk to you about somethin' outta the room? Just for a little bit? You're not in trouble. " Fiona looked worried, and reluctantly got out of the bed patting the kid's shoulder in reassurance that she'd be back, and the two walked into the bathroom nearby and closed the door behind them.

" I'm not sure how to put it, so I'm just gonna start talkin'. I'm supposed to be like the total opposite of HIM. Is it fine that I'm not _completely_ different from him? That I'd do things that Sonic might do without even freaking THINKING about it?! I-I'm not that worried, I'm glad I did those things, but the constant comparison is so annoying. Would he think we're doing the right things? I don't care what that idiot thinks, but I can just see his smug face if he ever witnessed me doing them, telling me that we're not so different after all, " Scourge said to Fiona nervously, slightly worried by the end that she would judge him as pathetic and find the whole thing irritating.

She comforted him encouragingly, " It's fine! If you were _completely_ different from him, and didn't have ANYTHING in common, you wouldn't have super speed because he has it, and wouldn't like rock music because he does, or chili dogs, and you wouldn't have so many of the other things you have in common with him that make you, YOU. His complete opposite would be like a turtle who breathed water on the opposite side of the universe and like hid in his shell instead of fighting and taking risks. You don't wanna be that just to be more of an individual! You have _plenty_ of advantages that you have every right to be proud of and enjoy, no matter who you share them with! It doesn't matter if you two have similarities, because everyone has things in common with a whole bunch of other people out there, and if you didn't have anything in common with him, you wouldn't be YOU. And I love you in the first place _because_ of those things, not _just_ _because_ of what makes you different. If I wanted someone nothing like him, I'd have gone with somebody else. Someone who WASN'T the _best_ boyfriend I've ever had, " putting her hand affectionately on his face at the final sentence for a second. " I love ya too, babe, " Scourge said out of habit with a smile.

She continued to her still worried boyfriend, " Who cares what he thinks is the right thing? Do what YOUR idea of the right thing is, whether it'd happen to coincide with his or not, because it's still YOURS. He'd probably still be calling you evil regardless because you kill Robotniks, not to mention the kid you stole a DS from! _Don't_ let him get in your head, sweetie, just do what _you_ want to do, like you always have! Remember your motto, ' Do what _feels_ good, and don't let anybody stop you! ' Including Sonic. That's just what he'd want. Don't feel bad about doing what makes you happy and not doing stuff you'd regret, because that's common sense for anybody out there, and YOU'RE choosing to do them. Because you want to. All that matters, _if_ that, is that I support you. I support everything you're doing the best I can. " She ended it off by kissing him, which reassured him almost completely as he returned the favor.

A couple seconds later, the kiss ended, and still with that inkling of doubt in him in an identity crisis, Scourge walked out of the room with her gesturing at first for him to follow her, and he told quietly Fiona in tranquil fury just outside his room, " I'm _not_ letting those islanders get away with it. It's time for me to show 'em what an evil twin can do, and stand up to those bullies like Sonic never would. I'll raze the place to the ground, I'll make a _wasteland_ outta that damn island just like with the one that hurt Miles, kicking ass and spindashing through _all_ the buildings I see, because _this_ time, I'm gonna go there and do it _myself_. "

Fiona then looked scared with her pupils shrunken at the image, and he said calmly to reassure her with his hands on her shoulders, " But you don't have to come with me. I understand, I mean, you don't have the same history with Miles that I do. Why would _you_ want revenge? I'd love for you to join in on the fun, but I can tell your heart wouldn't be into it. And that'd be no fun. "

As they walked into the room with SU Tails starting to play the DS, with Fiona trying to convince herself and get into the spirit of wanting to do what Scourge did and enact well-deserved revenge, she sighed at last, and apologized in a whisper, " I _want_ it to be. For _you_. I wanna go there and have fun, take everything out on 'em and destroy _everything_ , and they _do_ deserve it, they're bullies, but… there's no good reason. It's st, I-I'm sorry. " Scourge was annoyed at her irrationality, but couldn't stop himself from feeling sorry for her, and kissed her cheek before saying, " Stay here with him, and I'll be back in a few hours! I promise, Fi, 'cause I'll miss ya. "

" With hi- " Fiona said all wide-eyed in a panic, but before she could say anything else, Scourge had already ran out of the house, out of the room before she could finish her first word. She then turned around to look at the Tails in the bed cutely playing a DS, couldn't ignore who that kid reminded her of, and found herself sitting beside him putting her arm around him fondly holding him closer to her. Knowing she made the right decision because she enjoyed it instantly, she decided to relax with a content smile and watch him play the RPG in front of her. She could've tried to talk to him, making their quality time less silent, but she wasn't sure what to say.

Once Scourge got back from wreaking havoc on that island, he used his interdimensional teleporter, which to Fiona's surprise, brought her to a giant lab where a crowd of people were waiting in fear to be roboticized, with some Swatbots keeping them from fleeing the dark lab. One of them, a hedgehog, was roboticized right in front of their eyes, panicking and banging on the roboticizer's walls until it'd be over. Scourge holding her to his side with one hand the whole time was her only comfort at the moment.

" W-Why did you take me here? " Fiona asked looking terrified, both of what was in front of her and of the paranoia that Scourge might inexplicably take her to the roboticizer himself. Scourge, who didn't look like he was enjoying seeing what just happened, especially since he had come close to it happening to him, hid his inner turmoil from her and said in a dead serious manner, " I wanna remind you why you hate Robotniks so much. So if you ever hesitate about continuing with my goal, you can remember this, and remember the guy who imprisoned you. " The last thing he wanted was for her to tell him to stop in the middle of him attacking a Robotnik.

Before she could remain scared for any longer, Scourge let her go and spindashed through all of the robots in the room in a green and black blur, slicing through every single one of them at the speed of sound without stopping until he had finished, and then made sure that every roboticizer would be destroyed as viciously and thoroughly as possible. When he stopped, the entire crowd of people in the room cheered at the top of their lungs and celebrated, which came as a pleasant surprise to someone used to being feared and mistrusted by everyone he met. But the leather jacket, fangs and chest scars didn't seem to matter to them because all they saw was their savior. It was intoxicating, being praised and treated like that. Fiona asked the proudly smiling Scourge trying to hide the sheer amount of relief and approval, " Why'd you do _that_ , hun? "

" 'Cause I'd never miss an opportunity to smash some stuff, especially robots! Those are the best to destroy of all! And besides, look at the result. These people practically worship me! I bet they'd offer me an ice cream sundae if I wanted one, " Scourge said happily with a proud smirk and his arms crossed. Having overheard, the large squirrel Mobian behind him said, " Sure we'll get you one! You saved us! We just need you to escort us out. There's plenty more robots to destroy on the way. And then we'll all go to Knothole and pitch in for a celebratory party giving you all the ice cream and thank yous you want! "

Scourge felt a little annoyed at the idea that he was being told what to do, in fact the sheer thought of it would enrage him if he dwelled on him " having the gall to " do that, but the idea of causing some more destruction still sounded enticing to him, and the ice cream party even more. So he said, " Alright, but I'm doin' it 'cause I WANT to, not because you say so. I go by my _own_ rules! I'm doin' this all because I happen to have some fun with it. Alright, now I'll run ahead destroying every robot in the building. My girlfriend here will escort you out in the meantime until I come back, " looking irritated at first and smiling later.

He then went up to the exit to the room calling out to the crowd, " This way! " before running out of sight in a blur, and although Fiona was always nervous when he left her behind, she then looked back at the crowd of people behind her as she started to get the biggest lovestruck smile on her face, overwhelmed with how much she admired and respected Scourge. " _He's everything I ever wanted Sonic to be,_ " she thought, and started walking with the crowd of innocent civilians gladly following behind her down the dark hallway, feeling a bit of familiarity and pride at the experience.

However, the familiarity didn't go unnoticed by her, and her face fell as she was unable to ignore where that familiarity came from; her past as a Freedom Fighter. She thought feeling conflicted, " _I used to do this kind of thing all the time... Well, in a way, even if I never end up doing this again, getting rid of Robotniks with Scourge is basically achieving the same thing, right? Only better because there's no boring, ' walk down a hallway with a bunch of people I don't know, ' part. Although killing Robotniks still leaves most of their robots around to do what they're programmed, which would include, turning people into robots, and not to mention all the Robians that are still stuck that way. But I'm sure the Freedom Fighters of those planets will take care of that themselves. If they couldn't handle that, what would they be GOOD for?..._ "

She sighed unhappily thinking, " _Oh,_ _Fiona, you can't say that's the case for every zone. What if I find a zone with no Freedom Fighters left? What if a Robotnik'll turn out to have made a posthumous doomsday plan like the real Robotnik did, and with nobody to do anything to stop it? What if Scourge and I will have left the zone before we could see that plan get activated? Damn it, Fi, stop worrying like this! We always tend to stick around a zone spending the day there after we take down its Robotnik, if only so Scourge can enjoy the praise and rub it in the other Sonic's face. As he logically should. Plus we have some lunch and dinner and then sleep at a hotel together, robbing criminals on the street to get the money for it. That's what happens every day, so if that's gonna keep happening, why wouldn't he find out about such a plan? It'll be fine. And there's NOTHING for me to MISS. I'm getting to do everything I want in life with him around, no stupid restrictions where I'm not allowed to use guns against robots or anything like that. While I still have to do what he says normally, I'm still freer than I've ever been when I had dozens of people ordering me around. Like SALLY. With that judgemental glare with her arms crossed, looking down on me. I'll never miss someone like that after what she did. She let me down when I thought she'd be understanding. To her, everyone who breaks a law is a scumbag, even if they'd die if they didn't... But most of them were pretty nice to me. Just not Sally, or Sonic who did the same thing she did later when I thought he'd be better than that. But Tails didn't…_ "

Looking all worried, she found herself absent-mindedly taking a plastic bag with a sandwich in it offered to her as a reward by a kid with a lunchbox, and eating the peanut butter and jelly sandwich for brunch as she thought, " _A-And, well, even when I do miss any of them, which I shouldn't after they treated me like a criminal, but for the sake of argument just in case. Even if I do miss someone, like Tails, me and Scourge have plans to go visit the zone with Manik in it and the zone with the ice magic Tails in it every month, so it's not like I'll never see anyone like my old ' friends ' again. Because any time Scourge really misses Miles, he'll be taking me with him. He's already made plans to go to the arcade with Manik, and go stealing if he can get him to go along with it. I bet he wants to take him under his wing! How sweet is that?… Of course, if we start getting hunted down by the police, even after we got rid of the zone's Robotnik, that'll kind of put a hamper on those little visits. Ugh… Scourge is right, I need to relax. There's nothing to worry about._ "

Soon enough, Scourge had come back, having smashed all of the robots in the base leaving puddles of oil and piles of metal where they once stood, and was ready to walk down the rest of the hall with her holding his hand, having memorized the way out of the base from there by looking at a map. Normally he'd be too lazy to do that, but he figured in that case that the amount of time it'd take to memorize a map would be significantly less than the time he'd waste leading a crowd of strangers he doesn't care about down a maze hitting all sorts of dead ends. The only reason he wasn't leaving the crowd to find their way out on their own was to get that ice cream sundae party; that, and he had an excuse to have Fiona hold his hand the entire time. Fiona, finding the experience almost bliss, genuinely smiled and thought, " _What am I worrying about? I'm happier in my life than I've ever been. I've got everything I need._ "


	5. Chapter 5

The next Robotnik that Scourge and Fiona were going after was a surprising one to them. When Scourge created the portal to the next dimension and located the next Robotnik with it, he saw what looked like a hideous female version of Robotnik with long orange hair and a purple sorceress' dress, threatening Sally Moon, Chibi Amy, and a version of Tails with a brown streak of hair hanging down and a green scarf. They were all trying to dodge her thrown fireballs in her dark castle, and Scourge decided on moving the portal to above her head so that when he jumped through it from his end, he'd land on top of her. " _That'll be funny,_ " Scourge thought with a smile and his hand on his chin. He pressed the second button to officially create the portal connection from one dimension to the other, having not done so earlier because Robotnik would see the portal before he'd be ready to go in.

But before Fiona could shoot her with the paralyzing ray gun-taser through the portal's other end, Scourge jumped into the portal early by accident and landed on top of her before she could pull the trigger, reacting too quickly for her. This meant that after he landed on her and said standing on her back while she was collapsed on the floor, " Surprise! " deliberate movement was still possible for his enemy, and as a result, some lightning bolts were thrown desperately from her in the seconds it took for Fiona to react, readjust her aim and hit her with the paralyzing electricity, and one of those lightning bolts, hit the two-tailed fox in the room.

" NO! " everyone screamed at seeing the child get electrocuted and collapse to the stone floor, looking heavily burnt to a crisp. From the sight of seeing someone resembling his little brother figure meet an untimely demise, he went from looking completely panicked and devastated to enraged in a second, stealing a Chaos-Emerald-powered-wand full of electricity and terminating the life of the one responsible with everything in him. When he was done smacking his enemy with his eyes closed from the tears, there was nothing but sizzling ashes left, and he was panting on the floor too exhausted to attack anymore, leaving him too tired to be angry with anyone but himself.

There was a dead silence, as Fiona walked through the portal to meet with him looking about as devastated as he was, and saw him walk towards the badly burned Tails and sit down with his knees facing the floor, and place his hand on the kid's chest, pointlessly waiting for a pulse. Sally Moon and her young pink-haired sidekick were right in front of him looking miserable and shocked at what had just happened. The former said sadly, " If only Knuckles had been here, maybe he could've pushed him out of the way! Maybe he could've defeated her before it happened! But instead he's… We've got to bur- "

" Leave, " Scourge said quietly with his eyes closed to hide the increasing moistness in them. Chibi Amy said in a cracked voice, " What? But we- " " LEAVE! " Scourge shouted standing up, disguising his inner turmoil by acting as angry as he could, and this caused the two of them to run out of the room in a panic, not trusting him not to hurt them after what he did earlier. Then he went right back to looking heartbroken, mournful, and worst of all for him, ashamed. He sat down in anguish frustrated at himself for caring at all, and as the tears welled up, he thought, " _It's not Miles! It's not MY Tails! Why does he have to look so much like him?! Why do I have to care?! Damn it, I could've done something different! If I had just not jumped in so soon and she got shocked right away… It's all my fault! And now someone I should've protected is…_ "

While Scourge was sitting next to the burnt fox with his eyes covered by his hands, Fiona was having almost the same devastated reaction, tears streaming down her face as she checked for a pulse by the neck and mentally scolded herself, " _If I had just pushed the damn button in time instead of reacting to him going in that portal early, he'd still be alive! STUPID, STUPID!_ "

But she kept her reaction from Scourge the best that she could, and simply whispered with her hand on his shoulder, " I'll wait for you outside, " before running out of the room with him nodding at it and thinking, " _Good. I don't want her to see me like this anyways._ " He put his hand on the fox's chest again, hoping in denial that he'd feel a heartbeat or the rising and falling from breathing, and thought looking angry, " _I shouldn't care! He's not the same Tails that I had such good times with! The one that I taught to dip Oreos in milk to make 'em taste better, squeeze the last of the toothpaste out of the tube correctly, make snowmen, and snowboard! The one I showed around my city and gave a few music teachers, comforted and got dozens of hugs from and was treated the best by outta anyone else I met in my whole damn life. One of the only people I could relate to. But just because he looks like him, it completely… devastates me? Why?!…_ "

Unable to resist any longer, he buried his head in his chest, seeking comfort from the physical contact with his warm and soft fur and body, and wished as hard as he could that he could do something, anything, to get the kid alive and smiling. He even hoped that he could somehow transfer some of his own power from the Master Emerald into him, but he didn't have the ability to do that. Starting to panic and stubbornly refusing to accept what had happened, he tried shocking him in the chest with the lightning wand nearby to restart his heart and pounding on him with his fists to no avail, only stopping as the desire to avoid causing any more damage overwhelmed him, like a voice in his head scolding, " _Haven't you done enough?_ " And to add insult to injury, that voice sounded like Sonic's.

Scourge hated feeling that way because he didn't think he should feel anything about causing damage to the kid when he was already gone, but it still felt like crossing a line. After briefly considering CPR, he soon thought, " _It's pointless. He's gone…_ " He briefly caressed the kid's head like he would with Miles, and continued thinking looking angry, " _because I didn't protect him!_ " clenching his fist with a newfound hatred of Robotniks in general.

This led Scourge to stand up from the floor looking determined and wipe away the last of his tears, thinking, " _I'm gonna make damn sure that from now on, this'll never happen again_. " He took a deep breath making sure no more tears would escape, took the lightning wand with him, and ran out of the castle to meet up with Fiona, who was crying on the ground of the wasteland the castle was in. He turned off the wand to put it in his jacket pocket, put his arm around her sympathetically to let her cry into his shoulder, and said,

" From now on, Fi, we'll do a countdown to make absolutely sure I won't go into a portal early. That way, you'll have shocked the Robotnik the second the portal will be made, and he won't be able to do nothin' until we're done with him. I know neither of us should care, because these aren't the Tails we know. But there's no denying that we do, so we're gonna make sure this never happens again. We're gonna protect him, no matter what. We'll never be responsible for this again. A-Although it was 99% _Robotnik's_ fault. Remember that."

Fiona smiled through the tears, reassured by his statement, and started finally feeling some hope. " Let's go visit that injured Tails again, " she said, wanting to feel better and immediately remind herself that there were more of them out there. Scourge said happily, " Took the words right outta my mouth! " He handed her the small golden sceptre from his pocket saying, " Here, Fi, a close-range weapon just in case. The button here will fill it with electricity! Any time someone threatens ya from too close, you can pull this out on them! " She took it with a grateful smile giggling a little and put it in her pocket, and Scourge continued, " Also, we gotta come up with a nickname for the little guy. Saying Tails or Miles or ' the hurt Tails, ' isn't cuttin' it. Maybe we can figure out if he's capable of any cool stuff and name him based on that. "

After Fiona nodded in agreement, Scourge used the teleporter to warp them both to the Tails with the bandaged head, who was lying in bed on his back playing the DS that Scourge had given him with some hot cocoa near him when he noticed them show up. " Hey, little buddy! Ya feeling better? " Scourge asked him with a smile, hoping that it didn't look like he had been crying recently. " K-Kind of, still healing. Why are your eyes all red? W-What's wrong, Fiona? " he asked sadly, since Fiona still looked pretty obviously upset.

" Are you sure you can handle it? " he asked nervously as Fiona sat beside the kid and threw her arms around him for comfort. The two-tailed fox nodded looking unsure because he was curious about what had just happened, and Scourge sighed, before explaining, " Well, we hit a snag on our mission, because, an alternate version of you… we couldn't stop the Robotnik in time. He's, gone. From now on, we're gonna make extra sure that nothing like that will happen again. "

Looking sad, the kid asked, " What?! How'd that happen?! " and Fiona explained with her voice breaking after stopping the hug, " Lightning. W-We w-were dealing with a w-witch Robotnik and he jumped into the portal early. I couldn't taser her in time before she… " pulling the small ray gun out of her pants pocket to show him at the final sentence. The kid was stunned at finding out that an alternate version of him had suffered that kind of fate, but since Scourge and Fiona looked so ashamed from not preventing it, he couldn't bring himself to be upset with them. Instead, he reassured them, " It's okay, guys. At least most of the other versions of me are okay. Why don't we have some ice cream and watch TV in my room? Sonic and his siblings are busy trying to look for their mom, so I'd like some company. "

He then reached over to his cocoa to drink it, complained, " It went cold, " and then closed his eyes holding onto the cup tight, before drinking it again. Scourge, with his mouth agape at what he might have seen, touched the cup. It was warm. " Hey, fire powers, that's cool! " Scourge commented with a grin. " Huh? No, not fire! I just warm stuff up, " the kid said nervously. " You have the potential, though. Keep at it. I got a friend lookin' just like you who can do way more than just that, " Scourge replied looking impressed, sitting beside him at the edge of the bed with his arms and legs crossed trying to look like a rebel.

" Really? Why aren't you hanging out with him? No offense, " he said. " 'Cause Miles and I have different ideas of what we wanna do in life. He's happier being with some other people. It's a shame, I'd love to have him with me, but he'd be, well, not appreciative, if he was here, " Scourge explained casually. The kid replied, " Miles? That's my name. W-Well, obviously. He's another version of me. "

Scourge then complained, " Yeah, and we can't call you Tails either, because Fiona already knows one. " Fortunately, the two-tailed fox said, " You do? Huh. Maybe you should have a nickname for me, you know, a _nice_ one. " After some brief thinking where Scourge discarded the names of Inferno – too long and intimidating – Fire, Lava and Magma for being too obvious, and Blaze, he said, " Well, what about Flame? " almost all out of ideas.

" Okay, " he replied, and Scourge happily put his arm around his yellow furry back in a sideways hug to hold him closer to him, saying, " Awesome! Flame. You know, assuming Sonia and Sonic won't mind me hanging out with you too much, I think this could be the start of somethin' special. When we're not busy doing somethin', like gettin' our livin' cash, maybe we'll go hang out with you. At the very least, I could try to teach you to get more proficient with your powers! " Flame wasn't entirely used to getting so much affection yet, especially not from a criminal who killed Robotnik right in front of him, but he couldn't help but find the whole situation heartwarming nonetheless. But not enough to keep him from being nervous.

" Why? I mean, what do you like about me? " he asked. Scourge replied sincerely, " A sweet and adorable little kid like you? What's not to like? You're endearing to us, what can I say. Besides, you're smart, and I respect that. " Flame said while blushing from all the compliments, " I don't know about _that_. You really think I'm smart? " Fiona, able to talk without her voice breaking again, said cheerfully, " Tails certainly is! Why not you? And I agree with everything he said, there. Every so often we'll pop in for a visit. It'll be nice! "

Flame finally began to smile at the thought, deciding to let himself trust them, and Scourge said casually, " Yeah, we have an hour or two to spare! Why not? Now come on, I'll get us some ice cream before ya can blink, " immediately came back after leaving in a green and black blur, and gave them all bowls of mint ice cream with some spoons and sat down on the bed. He then picked up the TV remote and said, " Let's see what's on, " and after he turned on the TV, Fiona said, " Yeah, and if two out of three wanna stay on the channel, he will. Right, hun? " slightly teasing him at the end. Scourge rolled his eyes at potentially having to be unselfish and watch something he didn't care for, and said reluctantly, " Sure, babe. Just 'cause I actually _like_ ya both. " As far as he was concerned, it would be worth it as long as he would still be spending time with the two of them.


	6. Chapter 6

Meanwhile, the Freedom Fighters, back on Mobius Prime, were in the middle of dealing with Ixis Naugus after he became a major threat again, and Tails and Sonic were sent around the world looking for Chaos or Super Emeralds to stop him. Unfortunately, Ixis managed to intercept Tails after he detected that he was holding a few emeralds, trapping him in an electricity cage with another electricity cage separating the two of them. Tails, trying to avoid looking terrified, pointed the emeralds in his hand at Ixis, but before he could do anything with them, Ixis said, " Ah ah ah, hold on a minute, boy. I think we can make a deal. "

Tails, outraged at the idea, exclaimed, " A deal with you?! " But upon Ixis shapeshifting into earth fusing with the ground below and moving the ground to dig something up in a more impressive-looking way, Tails was completely stunned and gasped at what used to be buried in front of him. Ixis taunted, " Remember her? I found her, your little girlfriend that you _callously left behind_ on that artificial island of Robotnik's! " Some wind from below brought what was once below him right in front of him, causing Tails to whimper sadly, " Fiona?... "

The robot duplicate of Fiona from all those years ago, was lying in a coffin inside of a roboticizer, her eyes closed in deactivated sleep and her hands on her chest, looking just as young as Tails used to be when he first met her. The same short, brownish red hair and yellow bow. Tails exclaimed full of shame, " I didn't MEAN to! I didn't mean to abandon you, Fi, I'm sorry! Darn it, I said I'd make Robotnik _fix_ her! " He promptly felt even more ashamed, both at the fact that he still cared about her, and the fact that he actually thought that plan of his would work. " _Why oh why didn't I go get Rotor to go find her?! Why'd I have to be so easily distracted?_ " he thought berating himself.

Ixis then snapped his fingers and made a ring of fire around her, causing Tails to scream pounding the roboticizer's wall, " Fiona! " with tears running down his face. He had just gotten her back, and he might see her taken away again. Ixis taunted, " How do you like what I stumbled upon, mutant? All I have to do is press this button, " with his finger just above the button of the roboticizer, " and the machine will blow up, because she's already a robot to begin with. "

Tails shouted, " No! " feeling old wounds figuratively sting again as he remembered her rusting from the water, and felt all of that heartbreak return. He wanted to have gotten over it, especially after what the real Fiona did to him, but her being threatened brought it all back. Ixis asked with an amused smile at what he considered to be a mere game, " But why do you care? She's just a robot! And of a filthy traitor at that, " knowing that it would manipulate Tails into standing up for her and feeling his love return even more. The child was feeling the heat from the fire and electricity nearby making him sweat from it.

Tails exclaimed crying, " NO! She's not just a robot! Even after I found out what she really was, I still couldn't bring myself to hurt her! And she's not really _her!_ So she's a better person than her! She was my first love, I don't care, I'll reprogram her! Please! I'll do anything! " Tails exclaimed crying, completely overwhelmed by painful emotion and wishing that the deactivated android could just hear him.

" Anything? How about the emeralds you possess? I won't tell anyone! And remember, I can destroy her just like that, " Ixis manipulated. His finger was drawing closer and closer to the button. What followed was a tense silence, which Tails was finding unbearable.

" Fine! " Tails shouted, throwing them to the ground in front of him just barely missing his head. Before the sheer impact of what he had done could sink in, Ixis had granted him his wish and teleported away with the robot free of the roboticizer, and with the emeralds in his possession. It had all happened in an instant, and as it finally dawned on him, Tails thought, " _What have I done?_ " and fell to his knees crying into the chest of the one he never got over.

To his surprise, he noticed the scent of Miles nearby with his heightened Mobian sense of smell, heard him running up to him, and then felt his arm around his back comforting him. Tails, feeling guilty, looked up at his sad-looking evil twin, and said while crying, " I don't deserve any sympathy! I let all of my friends down! I be- " Before he could finish the sentence, Miles hugged him in a protective embrace, wrapping his soft tails around him as well, and reassured him, " Shh, it's okay. You didn't mean them any harm, so it doesn't really count. "

Stunned by all the compassion and pity, Tails replied, " But you're the one of us who hates traitors the most! Y-You said they disgust you! " Miles said sadly looking awkward, " You're clearly upset at what you did, and it's not like it really matters, because Sonic could get those emeralds back, he's probably found more than you have, and Rotor's just about done making the device that would defeat him once and for all. You had a once in a lifetime opportunity, you had to take it. This was just a minor setback, that they don't even have to know about. If you were genuinely betraying them out of hatred and bile, that'd be different, and I'd be calling you out on it, but it's obvious that's not the case here, and I don't think you deserve everything you've done for them being ignored in favor of this one moment of weakness. So, we can just keep this our little secret. You just happened to stumble into her, and you tripped and dropped your emeralds into a lake. " He briefly ruffled his hair in a reassuring caress in much the same way Sonic would, which caused Tails to relax his shoulders and sigh in relief.

" Thanks, Miles. You're a true friend, " Tails said to him looking into his eyes full of sincerity, and when the hug ended, he caressed the robot Fiona's head gently reassuring her, " Don't worry, Fi. Me and Rotor will reprogram you to get that nasty ' Robotnik wanting you to hurt me ' code out of your system, and give you free will so you can think clearly again. And we'll use nanites and stuff to get you an organic body with Nicole's help! Then you'll be good as new! " Miles, holding back from snarking about how she can't hear him since it might just make Tails cry again, simply commented, " We might need to give her a new name, though. And a bit of a ' make-over, ' as Bunnie calls it, because if she reminds Sally too much of Fiona, there could be a little problem. "

Tails, briefly picturing the robot Fiona with her hair in a loose bun, a lab coat, and some rose-tinted nerdy glasses, giggled a little and said, " How about I call her Phoebe? Fi for short. You know, Fi, bee, " and lifted the limp robot duplicate into his arms to carry her to Rotor's lab with Miles at his side. Miles waved his arms in a circle to create a miniature tornado that would carry the two of them to the lab at a fast pace, freezing the air below them after they were lifted up so that they'd be able to sit down on some ice with Tails holding Fi more easily, and brought them all to the lab.

Tails gently put the robot Fiona down on a workbench in the middle of the room for a days long project, before putting pillows below her to make it more comfortable, even though she couldn't feel it. The entire time, Miles could think of nothing except, " _That boy is one of the most compassionate people I've ever met. And to think I'm still a little envious of him. I hope Sally and the others won't give him too much of a hard time, or her. She'll be the new awkward outcast of the group, and as a kindred spirit of hers in that respect, I suppose I should give her support._ "

The Freedom Fighters had finally developed a way to permanently depower and seal away Ixis Naugus once and for all, thanks to a combination of Rotor's inventing skills and some shards of Super Emeralds. But unfortunately, the other day, before Miles could use what he had dubbed their Scepter of Sealing, Ixis escaped through a portal to another dimension, though not the Zone of Silence since that had been destroyed earlier. Rotor, standing in Sally's castle with everyone else, asked, " So what do we do now? " Sally said with her arms crossed, " Well, we can't just shrug it off like it's not our problem anymore! Even if he is in another zone, he's still the Prime Ixis and that means he's our responsibility! We've got to go after him! "

Rotor asked after reluctantly giving her and Sonic two zone-link teleporters, " But Sally, what if we don't make it back? Who will fight for our world, then? " Sally said, " That's a chance we'll just have to take. Come on, everybody! Rotor, Antoine, Nicole, you guys stay here. We can't put all our eggs in one basket. The rest of us will go after him! " With that, most of the Freedom Fighters went into the portal that Ixis in his panic had failed to close up, leaving Antoine, Nicole and Rotor slightly annoyed that they weren't allowed to come with them.

When they got to the other dimension, Tails was immediately shocked to see that among the alternate Sonic and Antoine was an alternate version of Fiona wearing an eye-patch and a purple jumpsuit with steel boots, with Ixis of course nowhere to be seen anymore. " Fiona?! " he exclaimed, which didn't surprise any of his friends in the least, and ran up to the alarmed and confused group, hugged the other Fiona getting an immediate hug back and said happily, " You're a Freedom Fighter again! That's great! What made you leave Scourge?! "

" Scourge? What _kind_ of a _name_ is _that?_ His parents must have _hated_ him, " One-eyed Fiona remarked while appreciating the hug, causing Tails to let go looking confused and embarrassed. Miles, who was standing between Sonic and Bunnie, commented unhappily with his ears drooping, " You wouldn't be far off the mark there. But he chose that name for himself. Was never a fan. " As Sally stared on with her arms crossed annoyed and Sonic was full of sympathy, Tails asked desperately, " You know, Scourge, your old boyfriend? Green hedgehog? "

Sally put her hand on Tails' shoulder saying impatiently, " Tails, she's not the same Fiona, let it go, " irritated just at looking at any Fiona Fox. One-eyed Fiona put her hand on her chin and said, " Green hedgehog? That seems to fit the description of the guy who took down Robotnik yesterday! " Then the alternate Sonic, who was wearing a sailor costume, said putting his arm around her casually, " Yeah, I saw it with my own eyes! Though it was pretty gruesome, he and his redhead girlfriend were really laying the beatdown on him, and his girl was keeping him paralyzed with this electrocuting ray gun. She looked a lot like my girlfriend, here! That was confusing. " Sally wasn't too keen on seeing that the alternate Sonic was dating the other Fiona, either, causing her to wonder at the sight of the glaring princess, " _What's wrong with her?_ "

Tails sighed sadly, his hopes dashed, with Miles reassuring him with a pat on the back. " Is this your twin brother? " an alternate Antoine asked, to which Miles quickly replied, " Yes, " before anyone could launch into a long explanation otherwise. Sally looked at him in confusion before it dawned on her, and she smiled briefly before explaining calmly, " We're here because we're after the Prime Ixis, who escaped from us to your world. We're trying to use this Scepter to depower him and seal him away. " Sonic exclaimed, " Wait a minute, didn't you hear what he just said?! Scourge was here! And he _killed_ this world's Robotnik! Isn't anyone concerned that he's out of prison? "

Sally said in annoyance, " We DID notice, Sonic, but if he was planning on threatening this world, then why didn't he stick around and try to conquer it by now? He's not our primary concern right now. Let's wait until he tries to threaten us first. Especially since we have no idea where he is. He probably left this world by now. " Sonic said with his hand on his chin looking suspicious, " What's his game? " as Miles awkwardly avoided looking at anyone, hoping that nobody would question him about Scourge's mission. Fortunately for him, they naturally assumed that he had come up with whatever plan he had on his own, and Sally ordered giving Sonic the Scepter, " Sonic, run around the planet to see if you can find Ixis. " Sonic remarked, " I could've thought to do that myself, you know, " ran away in a blue blur, and six seconds later, he returned and said, " I went in through another portal after him, he went to _this_ dimension, " and pressed the right arrow button on his teleporter to have the screen on it display a representative image of the zone Ixis went to.

One-eyed Fiona asked quizzically, " Why can't Sonic just seal him himself instead of going back to get you guys? Wouldn't that be, like, faster? " Sally looked at her irritated thinking, " _Of course you'd advocate him doing something without us,_ " seeing her as disloyal, and Bunnie explained, " Miles is a weather mage, he's the only one of us powerful enough to make the Scepter really work. The magic inside of him helps make it that extra bit more powerful to affect Ixis despite his enchantment on himself! " Tails said with a bashful smile, " It was nice to meet you, Fiona! Why don't we come back here after dealing with Ixis to go have lunch with you guys or something? "

This caused Sally to say looking irritated, " Tails, we're not- " and get interrupted by her, " Sounds good to me, " partially wanting to spite Sally for glaring at her like she was some kind of monster. Sally complained, " Tails, we're only allowed to do zone-hopping like this because Ixis is our responsibility, I don't know if the zone police would approve of us doing it just to have lunch with her! "

" She's not her! " Tails said to her in annoyance, which confused and worried the alternate Freedom Fighters. " What's her problem with me? Do I have bad breath or something? " One-eyed Fiona asked with her hands on her hips, being sarcastic at the end. Before Sally could say the answer, Tails interrupted her, " Just a petty childhood grudge, that's all. Let's go! " and pushed the button on the teleporter to warp himself and his friends away.

At the other dimension, Sally asked, " Why did you embarrass me like that?! ' Petty childhood grudge. ' Why, I oughta- " and Tails told her, " Because just because _your_ Fiona did something bad doesn't mean you have the right to get any other Fiona's friends turned against her for it! It's wrong! " Sally was stunned, speechless as she knew at heart that he was right, but still didn't want to so much as see another Fiona again. To break the awkward silence, Tails quickly continued, " Now come on! My Ixis locater says we're right on his trail! Miles has to get him from behind or he'll teleport again, " looking briefly at the device strapped to his wrist.

Fortunately, everyone complied, understanding what mattered more at the moment, and before they knew it, Miles had run up to Ixis from behind spinning his tails to make himself faster and blasted light out of the Scepter at him, sealing him away powerless, landing on the ground from jumping at him. When he looked up and Sonic and Tails caught up with him, Tails carrying Sally, he could do nothing but stare at the statue in front of him. It was of Fiona.

" What's this?! " Tails exclaimed, and went up to the inscription in a stone tablet in its pedestal, reading, " In memory of a cherished heroic Freedom Fighter. Fiona Fox. RIP? " He backed away from it and looked around the nature reserve park they were standing in, realizing that surrounding the statue were various pillars with paintings on them and words inscribed below them detailing everything she did as a hero.

Before anyone could say anything, an alternate version of Sally walked up to them from behind one of the pillars, wearing a green dress and a crown with some Freedom Emeralds on it, asking, " What was all that commotion over there? " confused at seeing alternate versions of her friends. Tails explained to her, " Miles over here just sealed away and depowered our version of Ixis, who escaped here, " and then asked sadly, " What's all this about? " as him and his friends were staring at the statue sad and speechless.

The alternate Sally told him unhappily, " It's a memorial to one of my old friends, a brave and heroic Freedom Fighter that we lost too young. " Sally went up to her and asked, " What happened to her, if you don't mind me asking? " and then hoped this wasn't a bad idea since Tails was right there. What none of them were aware of, was that the Prime Fiona was there, too. She and Scourge had heard the commotion with Ixis screaming and being sealed away, and hid behind some bushes to listen to them, shocked at seeing what looked like her old friends there. Naturally, Scourge whispered, " I'm gonna get some snacks, be back later, " making up an excuse to take off to avoid Sonic seeing him to possibly disastrous consequences, leaving Fiona to watch the scene in front of her alone, sad and conflicted at seeing how distressed her old friends looked at learning that an alternate version of her had died.

After some brief hesitation, the alternate Sally sighed and said, " S-She t-took her own life, " so quietly in her sad tone that the only reason Fiona could hear was because she was hiding behind the bushes right behind her. Tails and Bunnie gasped at hearing that while Sonic and Sally looked alarmed and upset, and the alternate Sally explained full of shame, " It's all my fault. Well, me and my version of Sonic. After we found out she had a past where she had to break the law to get food and water for herself, we had a much harder time trusting her. It made her feel like an outcast. We were even sending her on pointless fake missions to get rid of her so we could have meetings about whether we should trust her anymore, and the fact that some of us were defending her didn't make her feel any better. I think being treated with suspicion by Sonic was the worst of all. She said she expected better from him. Eventually, I told her I wanted her out, and she said we were the only people she had for support and she didn't want to go back to being alone! She was devastated, and she, she, jumped off the roof of the castle. " Tears welled up in her eyes and she wasn't the only one, as Tails and Bunnie were struggling not to cry as well, and Sally looked stunned, completely speechless and full of worry, wondering if the same thing could've happened in her world.

Fiona thought, " _I guess it's a good thing I went with Scourge,_ " while wiping away tears and trying to avoid sniffling to alert people to her presence. The alternate Sally continued while walking over to the pillars with paintings on their stone, " I blamed myself for what happened. I'm the leader of the Freedom Fighters, I could've let her stay if I wanted to, and if only I'd been more accepting and supportive of her, she'd still be with us. So to try to make it up to her in spirit, I ordered this memorial to be built, immortalizing her showing off every single thing she did to further our cause. "

Sonic was stunned at seeing all the different paintings there were, since most of the time Fiona was with his friends was when he was lost in space, so he barely got to see her doing anything useful when he returned home. To everyone else, though, it really opened their eyes, as they started remembering when their own version of Fiona was helping them out. Sally went back and forth in her mind over what exactly to say, not wanting to appear insensitive and not convey her feelings right, before sighing heavily looking melancholic, which revealed everything she wanted to. Even Miles looked depressed at the whole thing, thinking, " _What if that could've been me? If they refused to accept me for who I used to be, I wouldn't have been able to handle it, either._ "

Tails said sadly, " Was _that_ what that was really _about?_ She left us because… she was scared. " There was a silence, until Bunnie said reassuringly with a forced smile, " Well, we saw that other Fiona Freedom Fighter alive and well, so maybe most versions of her didn't meet that fate. Maybe most of them really were forgiven. And speaking of forgiven, how's about Sally and us go have that lunch with the eye-patch Fiona and work things out with her? " What she and the rest of her friends didn't mention was that they also wanted to remind themselves not every Fiona had suffered the same depressing fate, by being with one as soon as possible.

To Fiona's surprise, Sally admitted reluctantly, " You're right, we should. It wasn't fair of me to pass judgment on _her_ when _she_ hadn't done anything to us. She seemed nice enough, " and Sonic added, " And, while it's not easy for me to admit, I shouldn't have been a jerk to her either. It wasn't ' affecting the now, ' in any way other than the way it made us treat her. We let her past get to us, when she seemed to have gotten past it, but we weren't exactly being helpful keeping it that way. It was a disaster waiting to happen. I should've just said somethin' like, ' ah, don't worry about it, what's past is past! You're friends with us now, and that's all that matters to us! ' But I didn't. Well, I did most of the time, but not... "

Fiona wiped away some more tears very conflicted, considering over and over again whether or not she should go up to them and just have a talk with them confirming Tails' sentence to be true. She had never been fully satisfied with the fact that she never told them the complete reason why she left them, and just seeing Tails was bringing back an old memory that tore her up inside, but she didn't want to look weak and pathetic by going up to them while still all teary-eyed, and possibly choked up at that. She didn't want to disappoint them getting Tails' hopes up from her mere presence without Scourge making them think, for even a second, that she was going back to them, something she ultimately didn't want to do because her " free spirit " boyfriend made her happier than she had ever been. " _Going back to being ordered around by the bossy princess would feel like a downgrade_ , " she remembered reasoning with herself in her head earlier. She feared the awkwardness of talking to them and potentially being yelled at and argued with, especially when she was already too upset and fragile at the moment to handle it, but most importantly, it was because of Tails.

She knew that if she showed up, he would go from being an excited little puppy at assuming she was coming back to even more heartbroken and devastated than he was before at learning that she was still happy with Scourge and wanted to be with him, and that would cause a lot more trouble than it was worth. She decided that ultimately, it was better she just stayed put, because they had already figured out what she wanted them to. But there was still that part of her still attached to them who was pining for them as friends, nostalgic for the good times, wishing that she could just go back to them or people like them and start over, especially as Sally came as close as she ever had to admitting that she was in the wrong for the way she mistrusted her before she had done anything to betray them. And Sonic had admitted it outright. She couldn't bring herself to truly hate him anymore after that. But she couldn't bring herself to abandon Scourge either, especially considering how attached he was to her. He would be devastated, and she didn't want to think about what that'd do to him considering she was one of the only people who brought out his soft side. So with all of her reasoning in mind, she watched as her former friends warped away, and tears rolled down her face. " I'm sorry it had to be this way. "

When Scourge came back, by which point Fiona didn't look like she'd been crying anymore, he said to her holding the teleporter in one hand and a chocolate bar in the other, " I was lookin' at the teleporter, flipping through all the zones and I realized, there are MILLIONS of zones. Millions! I gotta step up my game. 'Cause if we just continue on this ' ice one Robotnik a day ' thing, I don't think I'm gonna get rid of 'em all before I've got gray hair! Don't worry, though, I won't overwork us, that'd be stupid. Let's just try to get as many as we can every day, and take lots of breaks to do some other stuff. " Fiona said happily, " That's a great idea! " and gave him a kiss, and with that, they went out for lunch.


	7. Chapter 7

At first, there was nothing but darkness and a complete lack of sensation, but soon, she began to gain awareness of the soft surface she was lying on, and the fact that she was suddenly lying down on her back at all. The last thing she remembered was trying to dunk Tails' head under the water to drown him as Robotnik had ordered her to, and then freezing up unable to move and losing consciousness. But when she looked back on that memory, for a reason she didn't understand, she felt very uncomfortable and horrified, and was grateful that she had failed in her endeavor to drown the sweet kid who she was programmed to make fall in love with her, just to lure into a trap. A trap that she also wasn't comfortable with remembering. The Fiona duplicate was so confused because for her entire life as far as she could remember, she had been completely loyal to Robotnik, and unquestioning of him in every instance, considering being loyal to him as the ultimate good and noble way of life, but now she was actually looking at him as a person to be disapproved of, for ordering her to do what she did.

Wanting answers about why she changed and what had rescued her from her earlier predicament, she opened her eyes, seeing the ceiling of an unfamiliar and small blue lab, and the familiar sight of the same yellow and white fox from earlier. He looked a little different though, taller. " Rise and shine, Fi! I promised I'd get you all fixed up, and that I did! " As she heard his familiar endearing voice which was a little bit deeper than she remembered, she sat herself up to face him better, which was a lot easier than she expected, and noticed that she had been lying on some white soft things when she was deactivated.

" You did? Thanks, Tails! Um, what are these? " Those were the first words she said to him, and they were in the same friendly tone that was so familiar to him from his nostalgic memories of Fiona as a friend. It was such a relief to Tails that it was that easy, that he hugged her in his excitement. It was then that she noticed that she had a second tail, and gasped in sheer surprise at seeing it; she was embarrassed that she hadn't noticed it earlier in her groggy, just-woken-up state, and that added yet another question to her list.

" I'm so glad you're back! " he exclaimed, and she instinctively returned the hug, smiling in absolute contentment. " I know, Tails. But you didn't answer my question. What are these soft white things I'm sitting on? " she asked him. Tails let go, and answered, " Oh, they're pillows. I put them there because I didn't feel right about lying someone down on a hard cold workbench, even if that someone wasn't able to feel it at the moment. So I made it more like a bed. I-I guess with your old life, you never saw them before. Never really had a bed to sleep on, " feeling sorry for her as well as awkward. " And why do I feel so much lighter? It took me so off guard that I sat up so easily, " she asked.

Tails sat in front of her with his eyes all eager at the question, and explained happily, " That's the great news! I got your mind in a new body! While your old one that wasn't waterproof only had some artificial fur and skin on the outside, me, Rotor and Nicole gave you a brand new, fully organic body, just like mine! Only it's formed with nanite robots for cells. Like my friend Nicole has for HER body! " She was intrigued at the answer, as well as feeling stunned at the sheer idea that the body she had always been in was gone forever, and yet she was the same person as before.

Then she asked in confusion, " Rotor, Nicole? Who are they? Rotor sounds like a robot, 'cause that's not in my database of normal names. Or is it a nickname 'cause he's an engineer? And Nicole's a robot, like me? Oh, well, _former_ robot… " feeling stunned and confused at the end not used to the idea that she was only a former robot.

Tails replied, " Oh right, Eggman didn't fill you in on who my friends are. Probably didn't think he needed to. I'll introduce you to them! Lucky for you, they're not too far away. Guys, she's awake! " as Fi looked all confused at the ' Eggman ' he mentioned. She asked, " Eggman? " as she started hearing some footsteps heading towards her hitting the metal floor getting closer and closer. Tails explained,

" That's Robotnik's nickname. Oh, right, well, not YOUR Robotnik. Actually, Robotnik got replaced by an alternate dimension version of him who had roboticized himself, and then he got turned organic by some ' Bem ' people and so here we are! You really have missed out on a lot of fun stuff. It's been years, " while smiling awkwardly with his ears drooping and scratching the back of his head towards the end. It was really starting to hit home just how long it had been since he'd seen her. He thought as the duplicate Fiona stared at him in confusion trying to let the information sink in, " _I'm gonna have a lot of filling in to do._ "

Fi couldn't believe it. She thought looking sad, " _Robotnik's gone? My old master… OLD master? A-Again, where's this coming from? Regret? I never experienced regret before! Is this my new body making me think different? I'm not sure how to feel about this. Am I still really me? Me? Huh, I've never even thought about myself that deeply before._ " She felt a bit of an identity crisis and was unhappy at learning that she had lost the closest she had to a father, despite her only knowing what a father was through a dictionary definition in her database.

She then realized she had a dictionary definition of pillows ready as well, and felt ashamed that she hadn't immediately instinctively recognized the pillows on sight. She thought still staring in the direction of the footsteps, " _Is my processor working slower now? I should've recognized the pillows immediately by accessing their definition, even if I'd never actually seen them before. Am I not as smart? Was I smart before? What kind of, personality could I define myself as having anyways? Nice? Because what I did to Tails doesn't qualify._ "

It had only been seconds since she had started her train of thought, but to her, it had felt like an eternity. Finally, a walrus with spectacles and a brown open coat and tool belt along with a lynx girl with a purple toga dress walked up to her, with expressions on their faces that she registered as having smiles that were strained, with the stress lines and eyes registering discomfort, fear and sadness. She could see the shrunken pupils and knew what they meant; Robotnik had been sure to put that sort of social interaction information in her database so she'd know how to be a good girlfriend to manipulate Tails, rather than scaring him away with a complete lack of social skills. Everything she knew at the moment was because of Robotnik. Now she had to rely on other people, most of whom were complete strangers. Tails snapped her out of her train of thought explaining, " It's okay, they're our friends! This is Rotor, and Nicole! " She looked at him after he started talking and registered a sad forced smile on his face with fear just like last time, although it seemed to ease up when he started gesturing to the friends he was introducing her to.

" What's wrong? " she asked nervously, to a quick awkward silence. " What do you mean? " Rotor asked, and she explained, " You all look nervous. Even Tails. " There was a brief silence as they all glanced at each other quickly before Tails said, " They're meeting you for the first time, but they already have some, history with the person you were based on. So it's kind of awkward right now. They'll get used to you, I promise. And I was nervous because I was worried about how you'd react. I know this is all really new to you. Especially the, second tail… " He looked depressed gesturing down at it, and Fi looked down at it herself.

She said awkwardly, " I was waiting for a good time to ask about that. " Tails admitted, " It was a glitch in the process. I needed a Chaos Emerald to provide the energy, and it provided more of it than I expected! " Then he smiled nervously and said, " Don't worry! Look on the bright side! It makes you unique, and gives us something else in common! " Rotor added, " Speaking of unique, maybe you should try out wearing some new hair accessories aside from the yellow bow. Not that it's bad, I like it, but you know, she wore it too. "

Feeling awkward, she replied, " Oh, " looking down at her second tail again. She thought, " _I wonder how they know my organic template? Was there something to the word ' history ' having such a negative emoting earlier?_ " Tails then said, " In fact, I'd advise avoiding the color yellow entirely. And white, and black. Any other color is great, though, so we'll take you clothes shopping and you can pick out whatever you'd like! You'd look amazing in anything, Fi! " Fi started to blush and smile irresistibly at the sudden compliment. He had been treating her like just a friend up to that point, so when he went back to acting like her affectionate boyfriend, it caught her by surprise.

" Or rather, Phoebe, " he said, causing her to look at him wide-eyed in complete surprise and confusion at the unrecognized name. He quickly explained, " You know, Fi, bee! Fi's short for Fiona, but it can also be short for Phoebe. I love your actual name, i-it's the most beautiful name I've ever heard for a girl, but I think Phoebe would be a nice nickname for you, that's unique to you, " whispering the second to last sentence clause in a bashful compliment. Already his love for his first crush was coming back to him and overwhelming him as he was finally talking to her again, and he had missed that feeling so much.

She was speechless at first, and then said, " Oh! A brand new designation… I like it, I guess, but I, I'll definitely have to get used to it. I much prefer ' Fiona. ' It's the name I was associated with my whole life. " She was going through quite the identity crisis, of course, from immediately being different from how she remembered and being given a brand new identity against her will. She liked her old look and name, and didn't like that they were being stolen from her because they met someone else with them.

Nicole said, " Well, since we already know a Fiona, it'd be best if you had a nickname. And a new hairstyle, if you want, " and briefly put her hair up above her head more while Rotor pulled out a handheld mirror to show her. Phoebe stared into the image reflected back at her in the mirror. She looked just like she had remembered; the yellow bow, reddish brown short hair, red fur, long dark eyelashes, muzzle, and no clothes over her body fur. Even though she had changed bodies. She said quietly, " I wonder if the real Fiona looks the same way… "

Feeling sorry for her while Rotor and Nicole looked sympathetic to her as well, Tails replied, " Try not to think of it that way, the ' real ' Fiona. You're both real. I'm not hallucinating you, after all! You just happen to have different origins, different, _pasts_. Which makes you unique from each other. " Phoebe forced a smile and rubbed his shoulder a little wanting to reassure him right away from his worry, saying, " You're right. I'll try not to let it get to me, " and flashing a grin at him that the real Fiona would've given back when she was a Freedom Fighter.

She thought, " _Note to self, don't be too willing to tell him what you're worried about. I don't like when he gets worried. All of a sudden. What's wrong with me? I never cared before! About anything other than my prime directive. Is this new body glitched in more ways than one? Do I still have the same mind? My memories are the same._ "

While she was distracted, Nicole had walked away, and when she came back, she was holding a green dress, and explained, " We kept this stored away for when you'd wake up. We figured you'd feel better if we gave you the choice to put it on yourself. You're already overwhelmed by everything being new without waking up in a new outfit. " Phoebe decided to put the dress on, putting it over her head and getting her arms through it, as Nicole reassured her, " Believe me, I know what it's like, getting used to an organic body for the first time. There's a lot you haven't experienced yet. So if you ever want someone to relate to about it, you have my assistance. " She then smiled at her warmly, which warmed her heart and caused her to have the irresistible urge to smile back. She did so and replied, " I think I'm gonna like you. Thanks for the dress! I still wanna go pick some out for myself though. Come on, guys, let's go clothes shopping! I can't wait! "

Tails smiled, but it was forced once again, as he was just as worried as the rest of them about the idea of her being recognized as someone she's not. His eyes darted around the room and stayed on a pair of sunglasses that had been left on the workbench, and as Fi went back to wondering what happened to her old master, he said holding the pair of shades, " Do you wanna wear these sunglasses, too? " She noticed a pair of glasses with dark lens and pink frames, put them on really curious about getting to experience wearing glasses for the first time, and noticed that, of course, everything looked slightly darker through them.

She looked outside and commented, " That certainly helps with the bright sunlight. After all that time of having my eyes closed, they aren't fully adjusted to the light yet. Thanks! " and gave him a thumbs-up. If anything, that made her look kind of corny and dorky, a sort of charm that set her apart from Fiona right away, as her naivety from feeling like she was just introduced to the world outside Robotnik's lab made her act so young and innocent. Just like Tails. Rotor, Tails and Nicole smiled in relief. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad after all. With that, Nicole and Tails started walking out of the lab with her, with Tails saying, " Come on, I'll lead the way, since you don't know your way around yet. Maybe we can give you a whole tour of the place later! "

" Thanks! " Phoebe responded casually as they started to walk on the grass outside in the warm sunlight, which felt unusually nice on her skin. She thought, " _I wonder if sunlight is healthy for the organic body? Why else would it be programmed to feel so good from it?_ " Tails then started to hold her hand, which she appreciated, and said cheerfully beside her, " You don't have to say thanks for literally everything. I mean, not that I don't appreciate you expressing gratitude. It's a wonderful thing of someone to do! It's just, well, " and Nicole continued more tactfully by advising her, " How about you change things up every once in a while thanking people in other ways? "

Curious about her advice, Fi asked, " How so? " as they walked past some trees and some random Mobians walking around. Nicole explained, " Like by saying, ' I appreciate that, ' or ' Thank you. ' If you simply say the same sentence every time, it'll feel repetitive to people and then insincere, like it's just being recited from a script. I had to learn that one the hard way. " Fi nodded, grateful for the advice, and said, " Thanks! I mean, I appreciate that, Nicole. You clearly have a lot more experience interacting with people than I do. Tails was the only person I ever had a conversation with. "

" Not even Robotnik? " Tails said feeling sorry for her. Fi explained, " Not even him! Once I was created, he showed me to my organic template when she was in some cell and then he shut me down for, I don't know how long, and then the next thing I knew, I was being reactivated and told I had a mission at an artificial island. That's when I met Tails. " Tails said resentfully, " It figures. He just wanted to use you for what he made you for. He didn't care about his creations outside of what they could do for him. "

Phoebe felt sad and a strange feeling in her chest at hearing that. " Really? " she asked. Tails, recognizing that she was disappointed, understood why and said, " I'm sorry, that's just how he was. Later, Eggman would make some robot ' son and daughter ' ADAM and M, and he must have talked to them a lot because he was using them as henchmen. But that didn't go over well. They're not exactly around anymore. From what I heard, he told his ' daughter ' Mecha to self-terminate because she betrayed him! And I bet your Robotnik would've been the same way. It's not an easy thing to hear, I know. I wish he was a nice person, too. " She continued to look sad reflecting on that and letting it all sink in. The closest person she had to a father never cared about her, and even if he did see her as a daughter, it wouldn't have stopped him from killing her for perceived disloyalty with no hesitation.

She said, " I hope you understand, Tails. I don't register him as my master anymore, for some reason. I just don't feel right that the one I owe my existence to wouldn't have really cared about me at all. Well, the one other than you. You saved me from that island, after all, after what that, water, did to me. " She shuddered at the end, vowing to stay away from water from that point on. That would become interesting when she would inevitably have to take a bath or drink some water later, not that she was consciously aware of that yet.

Feeling guilty, Tails apologized, " Yeah, I did save you. I'm sorry it took so long. Really, Fi, I am! I thought I could make Robotnik fix you, but obviously I was wrong. And I didn't find you again until a week ago. " Nicole sensed an awkward situation coming up as Fi asked, " How'd you come across me? " and Tails felt forced to explain what he did. He sighed and said awkwardly and sadly,

" There was this evil wizard out there named Ixis Naugus. Really evil, he can't be trusted, just like Eggman! And we were after him trying to get Chaos Emeralds to defeat him once and for all – which we eventually did thanks to Miles, a friend of mine, depowering him and sealing him away with a magical Scepter. But before that, well, he kind of, he wanted the Chaos Emeralds I had with me. And it turned out he had found you! He said that he was offering me a deal, the Emeralds in exchange for your life. Needless to say, I took it. "

" Then why do you look so sad?! " Fi asked looking really worried, scared that he was feeling regretful for saving her life. She wondered why he ever would. Tails explained looking pained at just talking about it, " Don't get me wrong, I'm really glad you're back. I just got to see you again back there and if I had lost you again, it would've broken my heart. But I still had to make a deal with one of the worst enemies of my friends to get you back. I betrayed them for you. And since they're my best friends, and the closest I ever had to a family until recently, it's only instinctive of me to feel guilty about it. Lucky for me, they forgave me for it, because they already had plenty of Chaos Emeralds and they trusted me a lot my whole life. "

Then Nicole added looking worried as they headed for the shopping mall, " It wouldn't have been the same if _you_ did that. I'm sorry, but you're not trusted unconditionally by the Freedom Fighters just yet. You're new, after all. " She gently rubbed her shoulder and back for a second to make her feel better, feeling sorry for her as she looked sad and melancholic. She was starting to remind them of how Fiona looked sad when Sally first learned she had a checkered past.

She thought sadly staring ahead away from the staring Mobians near her, " _It's not fair! I didn't do anything wrong. I'm not their former enemy. Well, actually, come to think of it, I am. I got Tails thrown in a roboticizer, and then tried to terminate him! Of course I'm their former enemy, of course I have to make up for that, even if I did change. Did I change just because I have an organic CPU now? If so, should I really get the credit? Did I really earn this? Or am I just feeling bad for nothing since that was the old me doing those horrible things? Wait, why do I think they're horrible, exactly? What's this feeling?... I guess it is rational, Tails was always really nice to me. And considerate, even! No one had been nice to me before. He shouldn't have been repaid for it like that. That's why I should make it up to him… How'd I know what ' make it up to ' means? Did his friends and him add that phrase to my database?_ "

Feeling even more worried as they got increasingly close to the tall building in front of them with the transparent doors, Fi asked, " Tails, how different is my CPU now that I have an organic body? Do I even have the same one? Or did it rust away and need to be replicated?! " Another awkward situation resulted and Tails and Nicole's expressions reflected it. Tails, hoping that he wouldn't be in big trouble, simply explained nervously,

" All I did was remove Robotnik's evil programming forcing you to have no free will and try to KILL me. Now you can make your own decisions if you want and be your own person and have a happy fulfilling life without being a robot slave. Just like the rest of us! The deroboticizer didn't change your CPU much. It's the only part of you that's not organic, aside from what's normally the _bone_ surrounding and protecting the heart. I decided to keep it that way so that you couldn't get brain damage as easily as everyone else can since the normal brain is soft and vulnerable. If it gets shaken, it can hit the skull and that can really hurt. Your brain is metal, so it's much harder to damage. Everything else, though, was unnecessary to change. "

She nodded along, understanding, and questioned with her hand on her hip, " Then if everything's the same, why'd I recognize the phrase ' make it up to you ' in my thoughts? And suddenly feel the need to do that? " Tails explained nervously, " The first thing, it only makes sense that I thought you should know that, especially since a lot of people are gonna be saying that around you. The only other new information I gave to you was the months' worth of knowledge about wiring and programming and stuff that Fiona had, from Rotor's training her as a Freedom Fighter. That way, you can help me and Rotor out as my lovely lab assistant! And the reason you wanna make it up to me is because you came to the conclusion that you should on your own. Now you have the free will to do that, instead of considering following Robotnik's orders universally good just because. That's something robots never get to enjoy. Don't worry about it, alright, sweetie? Relax. "

The once robot duplicate of Fiona sighed in relief relaxing her shoulders as she realized his reasoning was reassuring. He was right, she had come to the conclusion for rational reasons. " You're right, honey. I should be making it up to you. You've always been nothing but nice and compassionate to me, and you're the first one to ever do that. After the way I ' rewarded ' you for it, it's only logical that I should want to make things right, " she replied calmly. Suddenly, she gasped at some doors opening up in front of her, Tails and Nicole, sliding to the right on their own.

" Tails! The doors opened by themselves! That's so cool! " she exclaimed, getting all excited from seeing that for the first time. Nicole saw her as acting like an adorable excited little kid at that, just like Tails is, and it was very strange to her seeing someone who looked so much like Fiona that way when she primarily knew her as a snarky teenager. But her more naïve robot duplicate hadn't shown a snarky bone in her body, if only because she hadn't been given a reason to yet. She thought, " _I'll really have to get used to that,_ " as Tails giggled, and explained, " They do that for everyone. They're automatic, " causing Phoebe to blush in embarrassment at her naïve reaction saying, " Oh. "

Tails giggled, and Fi put her hands on her hips asking, " Hey, what's so funny about that? " Nicole thought, " _THERE'S the snarky teenager I know,_ " reassured from the familiarity, and Tails stopped looking nervous, and explained, " It's just endearing, that's all. You're so new to the world! Come on, I'll take you to the clothes store. Nicole has the money in her dress pocket. "

Fi relaxed a little, forgiving him, and the three of them all walked into the shopping mall and started heading towards the shop all the way at the end of a long wide hallway of stores in a room with a tall skylight ceiling. The whole time, the three of them awkwardly tried to ignore how so many of the civilians walking by them were staring at Phoebe recognizing her as Fiona. Feeling increasingly nervous, Phoebe couldn't help but focus on all the uncomfortable attention and listen acutely to the murmuring of the crowd, with some of them saying, " Fiona? " " She's back? " " Why's she shorter? " " Why's she holding his hand? " And then, the worst comment of all hit her like a ton of bricks. " The traitor? Why are they letting her be around? "

Her pupils were already shrunken from anxiety, but that comment made her hang her head in shame, with her ears slightly drooping, having the horrible realization that the person she was based on was a traitor. And even though she wasn't her, the insult still rang true. After she let go of Tails' hand feeling like she didn't deserve him, he immediately put his arm around her in a sideways hug to reassure her, and said gently, " They don't know it's you. They think you're Fiona. " Nicole tried to look on the bright side looking awkward as she thought, " _At least it's not me who's getting all the negative attention,_ " being reminded of when so many people in the nanite city had turned against her.

Fi felt terrible as she said sadly in a voice full of shame, " But I _am_ a traitor. Remember what I did? " not feeling like she deserved the affection and comfort. Tails then reassured her, " That wasn't your fault. You weren't thinking straight back then, and you'll never do anything like that again. " She tried to keep those words in her mind, remembering them over and over again to reassure herself, as the three of them all walked into the clothes shop at least, relieved because there were barely any people there at the moment. It was a welcome break from the crowd, even if a small portion of it could still stare at them from outside the store.

Tails told her, " All you have to do is figure out what your size is and you can have any of the dresses that fit you! Well, as long as it fits our budget, " and Nicole showed her briefly the amount of money they had with them. Phoebe's eyes figuratively lit up as she started smiling in excitement, incredibly overjoyed at the idea that so many different pretty dresses could all belong to her. " Wow! There's so many of them! How will I ever choose? " she exclaimed happily.

Nicole suggested, " I'll try to help, I have more experience with wearing dresses, " secretly looking forward to doing this as if it was a rite of passage for an organic teenaged girl, making it official that she was one of them. Fi thanked her saying, " Awesome! " and Tails, as Nicole hoped she wouldn't go overboard, said, " We just need to do some math with the price tags to make sure we don't go over budget. So you can't have everything here, unfortunately. Believe me, if I could, I'd buy out the whole store's worth for you! " Appreciating it, Fi giggled a little, and said cheerfully, " Thank you, Tails. I'm feeling better already! "

And as she started shopping in childish excitement, Tails hoped that level of joy would hold out after she left the store, and would have to go back to being stared at by a crowd of gossipy villagers. He knew the cat was out of the bag now. News would spread of " Fiona's " return and there was no way Sally wouldn't hear about it. He thought beside Phoebe, " _I should've known the sunglasses and dress wouldn't work. She needed a better disguise. Who could forget that face?_ " finding himself staring at her lovestruck for a second by the end.

After Nicole taught her how to tell if a dress fits by putting it right up to her skin, they did their shopping, with the former Fiona android picking out 7 different dresses of every color except yellow and black, one for each day of the week. When they finished shopping, they purchased the dresses, with the clerk saying to her after she put them on the counter, " Y-You're, Fiona Fox! " Still fortunately in a good mood from clothes shopping for the first time, she replied to the scared and uncomfortable lady, " Phoebe Fox. You got the wrong girl. "

Confused and suspicious, the clerk, a racoon lady who was dressed in expensive clothes, asked while putting the dresses in a bag, " Phoebe? Wait, she had a little sister? " deducing that from her being Tails' height. Tails quickly said, " Yes, apparently! " took the dress bag in a hurry and rushed the confused Fi out of the store, telling her in a whisper as Nicole followed, " Just go with it. It'll be a lot easier for people to trust a long-lost little sister than a former robot. Considering all the trouble robots cause to people trying to roboticize them. "

After a brief silence where Fi looked depressed again since she had tried to do that to him, she finally asked as they started walking through the mall, " Tails, who _is_ Fiona? Why was she a traitor to the Freedom Fighters? " There was a brief awkward silence as Tails tried not to tear up at the thought and the two of them felt incredibly sorry for him. Fi continued remorsefully, " I mean, I'd like to KNOW the person I keep getting compared to, after all. I'm sorry if it's hard for you. "

Tails sighed, and said sadly, " I-I, I'll tell you when we're some place private. I don't want people to see me, upset. " Nicole was about to explain it for him, but stopped herself when she realized it would only make Tails cry from being reminded of it either way and defeat the purpose. As a result, the three of them walked out of the mall uncomfortably quiet as they tried to ignore the customers who stared at Fi.

When they finally left the mall and got a good distance from it, they found themselves walking through a grassy field alone on the way back to the lab, and it was then that Nicole decided to tell her the whole painful story; about how Tails had fallen for Fiona because she reminded him of her, only to get his heart broken by her when they used to be fairly good friends, with only a vague excuse about wanting to teach him that he can't trust anyone. Of course, Tails started crying just hearing about it again, causing Phoebe to put her arm around him holding him close to her side and dry the first of his tears with her other hand.

When the explanations were finished, she looked stunned and upset, saying, " I can't believe I'm based on someone like _that_. I'm nothing like her! A-Am I? " thinking of Fiona as some sort of monster. She stammered, " N-No, of course not. She says you can't trust anyone, and I'm not like that. What kind of life did she have to make her that way? " There was a brief, depressing silence, before she added, " I barely ever interacted with anybody. The amount of people I've talked to can be counted on one hand. Maybe that's why. She has more experience with people than I do. Maybe she saw the worst in them. "

Worried and scared of her turning out that way, Nicole explained, " Her parents abandoned her, and so did a lot of other people. She had to do anything she could to survive all alone, even taking what's not rightfully hers. She even worked with a bounty hunter at one point. That's why she became so untrusting. " Fi became quiet after that, reflecting on how the closest person she had to a parent, Robotnik, did abandon her, by not fixing her and instead leaving her on the artificial island rusted. She became frustrated with him and bitter as she asked herself, " Why didn't he fix me? Why didn't he think to fix me up and use me again? Maybe if he had, I could've gotten the way I am a lot sooner, so why did he have to go and forget me? I-I don't understand. "

Tails put his hand on her shoulder trying to calm her down and told her nervously, " He had a LOT of robots at his disposal. And I mean a lot. I know it doesn't seem fair, but you were just one robot to him, out of millions! And he probably figured I wouldn't fall for the same plot twice, so he didn't bother to try again with you. The point is, no one else is gonna forget about you like that. Especially not me! I never forgot about you, Fi. I just couldn't do anything to help you until now. By the time I got back to where I last remembered you were, you were gone. "

Phoebe sighed heavily, and unclenched her fists. She said unhappily, " Sorry I worried you. It was just frustrating to me. How long was I rusted like that? How many years has it been? " Tails told her, " I'm 11 now. Don't worry, it's fine. Me and my friends will fill you in on everything you missed. Look on the bright side, Fi, it's the perfect excuse to have all sorts of talks with us about it! I'm happy to reminisce with you, for the most part. " Fi asked looking serious, " What happened to Robotnik? "

Tails explained, " Makes sense you'd wanna know that first. Your old master got kind of vanished away when his Ultimate Annihilator got reprogrammed by Snively. It was supposed to be this evil weapon to destroy every living being except him, why he'd want that I'll never know, but Snively made it so that it did the exact opposite. Then Robo-Robotnik replaced him months later, because he won back home and, uh, I couldn't really follow the logic behind coming here after that, but he did. He did briefly bring Robotnik back, but his molecules were unstable, so he disappeared real quick. "

Phoebe asked him, " But why'd Snively do that? " feeling ashamed afterwards that she was acting like he did something wrong when she shouldn't be feeling any attachment left to her master. " Because he's evil. He wanted to take his place and he wasn't a good boss, " Tails simply told her, and they all walked into the lab, having reached it before they knew it.

Before Fi could say anything in response, her stomach made a strange noise and felt an unfamiliar way, and she asked, " What was that?! " looking worried. As Tails took the yellow bow out of her hair just in case and Phoebe put on a red and purple dress with a sun design, he explained to her, " You're hungry. I'll get us some dinner, and introduce you to my parents. We're having steak, corn and mashed potatoes! Maybe you'll like it! " Phoebe looked stunned and confused, once again reminded that she was in an organic body now and had to get used to it.

" I haven't ingested any subsistence since that coconut milk drink we shared, " she said looking worried. Tails reassured her, " It's okay, you just put it in your mouth and chew it with your teeth, and then swallow it. It's easy, instinctive even. Unless it's a drink, then you just swallow it. There's so much stuff you have to learn, and I'll be happy to tell you everything you wanna know. Makes me feel smart! I-I mean, smarter. I did turn out to be a genius after all. " He smiled nervously, still too humble to really believe it, and Fi said looking all wide-eyed and impressed, " You did? " " How else could I have helped fix you up? Most of it was _my_ project. My secret project for a week. I'll be introducing you to most of my friends for the first time. " he replied cheerfully.

Before she could leave the lab, Nicole said, " Wanna try a ponytail? " holding her red hair with a bit of an excited but timid smile. Finding her endearing, she nodded, and was given a ponytail to the best of her ability, although it was loose because of a lack of hair accessories available to them. Tails and Nicole smiled in relief; with the pink framed-sunglasses, ponytail and dress, they hoped that she would look different enough from Fiona that just looking at her wouldn't give people like Sally painful memories and a difficult time trusting her. While a mere difference in physical appearance seemed minor, first impressions were everything, and it'd be easier to accept her as a different, more trustworthy person if she looked different.

Unfortunately, it wasn't different enough for Sally not to recognize her, as they happened to encounter her on the way. " Fiona?! W-What, what are you, you're younger! What, did you find a reverse Ring of Acorns? " Sally said in bewilderment, taken aback. Tails quickly explained, " It's not her! Relax! Remember that robot duplicate of Fiona? I, happened to stumble on her last week, and so I removed Robotnik's nasty programming to hurt me. Now she's got free will and she's good! She's got an organic body that's my age, and she's even got a new name. Meet Phoebe, my new lab assistant! "

Registering suspicion and apprehension in Sally's expression, Phoebe was looking nervous and uncomfortable the whole time, and forced a smile at the end, waving to her girlishingly a little bit trying to diffuse the tension, while holding onto Tails' hand for dear life. Sally took a few seconds, glaring at her skeptically with her arms crossed, before telling her sternly, " Alright, I'll tolerate it. But don't you ever break his heart! He already had trouble with the _last_ Fiona. I expect _full_ loyalty from you to the Freedom Fighters, or else. "

With that, she coldly walked away, clearly steaming at just seeing her, and Tails could only sigh in relief that she cared about him enough to humor him. He was expecting her to yell at her and tell her off and make a whole big drama out of it, but instead she kept her cool and kept to a tranquil fury. Her ability to handle her emotions like a calm and collected leader-type was one of the things he admired the most about her.

With her safely out of earshot, Fi thought, " _I've never been so scared in all my life!_ " and then she told Tails nervously, "My pumping organ's faster than normal! Should I be concerned?! " and he quickly reassured her, " No, it just does that when you're scared. She won't bite. She's just intimidating when she doesn't trust someone. My friend Miles would know, he's been through almost the same thing with her. He even used to be my enemy until I saved his life! I think he could relate to you a little. "

With that, they went to Tails' house to have dinner with his parents. " Hi, Tails' mom and dad! It's nice to finally meet you! " Phoebe greeted them before Tails could say anything, and they both looked nervous and confused at seeing her. They were apprehensive at first, but when Tails explained who she really was saying, " It's okay, she's the robot Fiona from earlier, but made organic and good! " and she showed over dinner how much she loved their son, they seemed to relax. She hoped that this meant things wouldn't be so bad after all.

The worst she had to deal with was avoiding crowds of people, who would stare at her and talk about her. So she resolved to stay in the lab most of the time, fully dedicating herself to being his lab assistant, even if it meant isolating herself from most of the world. Miles would proceed to teach her that she had fire powers as her second tail represented, Tails would proceed to give her some rose-tinted glasses, and she'd get Bunnie to style her hair into a loose bun, trying to give herself her own look and reassure people that she wasn't the same person she was based on, and Tails couldn't be happier to have her back. 

Meanwhile, Scourge and Fiona had checked into another hotel after getting rid of their 62nd Robotnik, and mugging enough criminals on the street over the course of a week to amass a fortune. They had enough money to easily pay for their food, water and hotel needs for the next month. " Hey, new shampoo? " Scourge asked Fiona with a smile after she finished having a bath at their hotel. " Yeah, Dove! " she replied, and he kissed her, clearly finding it appealing. The two of them both said at the same time, " I love you! " and then after a brief silence, started laughing for a little while before saying, " Jinx! " to each other.

Scourge said with a cheerful shrug, " Great minds think alike, I suppose. Come on, babe, let's start the movie, " and put in the action movie the two had picked out recently, sat on the couch together, and Fiona sighed happily at him holding her close with his arm around her casually. She thought, " _This is the life… Would Sonic have been this affectionate and happy with me? Would, Tails? If he was my age? Well either way, I'm happy. No sense letting nostalgia distract me now._ "


	8. Chapter 8

" Happy birthday, babe! I got 'cha somethin', " Scourge said going into their hotel bedroom when Fiona woke up, holding a box in green wrapping paper, and handed it to her saying, " It was a bitch to wrap, but it was worth it! " She promptly smiled saying, " You wrapped it yourself, for me?! Wow, you really care! " while removing the bow, thinking it was sweet that he bothered going through so much effort instead of just threatening someone else to do it for him. As she tore apart the wrapping paper, Scourge said proud of himself with his arms crossed, " Only the best for you, sweet thing! " believing that she was worth all that effort. He was always one with a flair for the dramatic, and wouldn't have thought it was cool to just have a gift with no wrapping paper in it for the extra decoration. " _That would've just been lame,_ " he had thought.

When she tore the wrapping paper enough to see what the gift was, she gasped with a smile and said happily, " A medical textbook! You DO listen! " and hugged him, overjoyed as Scourge looked very proud of himself for remembering she said she'd like one. She said, " I'd love to learn all about this stuff, " holding the book in front of her eyes looking fascinated, and then said with a chuckle, " Although I won't have much time to put aside for it when I have you! " Scourge held her in his arms again saying, " Ah, I'm sure you could put aside an hour a day between our making out and stuff, " before kissing her, much to her delight.

Then she started to finish up taking off the wrapping paper, and said, " Since we don't have a permanent place to stay, I'll keep it at Flame's house. Of course, I don't know why I was so surprised you thought of this, hun. You've always been such a great boyfriend. That's why you're still with me after all this time. Even with Finitevus testing the whole thing. " Scourge agreed, " Yeah, screw him! I'd rather be with someone I like and wanna be with. Well, obviously, " chuckling at the end.

The two of them both proceeded to remember and reminisce about that fateful day, when Scourge and Fiona had come back to Doctor Finitevus after escaping prison. At first, Scourge was quick to try to assist him in his plan as long as he could do something for him, having the goal of being infused with lightning powers to work for. But things came to a head when Fiona learned that Finitevus was planning on using some missiles he had stolen from Eggman, and worst of all, on someone other than Eggman. The minute after Finitevus said he was going to fire them at New Mobotropolis, Fiona snapped, and ruined all of the missiles in a rage, taking full advantage of the technology in his base to do so. She was slightly frustrated with herself for having that reaction, but couldn't help herself if there was a chance of her doing something about it. She tried to convince herself it was just misdirected anger and she was taking her stress out on them for fun.

When Finitevus discovered Fiona destroying the last missile with Scourge having just followed him there, he screamed, " Not again! Scourge, get that traitor! " There was a brief silence lasting seconds, as Scourge looked horrified dwelling on the idea of life without her. It dawned on him just how lonely he'd be if he chose that madman over her when he just got her back after months of separation in the prison. Even when he looked back on his life before he met her, he found himself thinking about how he wished she could've seen whenever he did something cool back then because it'd impress her, and comparing her to his previous girlfriends like Alicia and Rouge who were never as nice to him and fun to be around. He saw both of them as nags, especially Alicia. While he easily ditched Rouge when she destroyed some missiles of Finitevus since he was only with her for her looks and could get any other girlfriend for the affection, Fiona was something special.

" Well?! What are you waiting for?! " Finitevus shouted in frustration, as Fiona approached him holding a ray gun, trying to hide her absolute fear of Scourge leaving her with a forced stressed out glare. Scourge considered in the remaining two seconds what would happen if he chose Finitevus over her, and it was clear that the thought of losing her like that terrified him, and would give him a nasty break-up with a valued partner and a void in his life that would always depress him from being unable to fill. He even remembered telling Sonic part of the reason why she was so special to him; that while for all he knew his previous girlfriends were born evil, Fiona " chooses to be, and that's hot! "

To Scourge, she was a nice person, but still wasn't opposed to having a little fun. She was the golden deal, good AND open-minded. So being with her let him have his cake and eat it too, as now he got to actually have one of the many nice girls that wouldn't go with him because he was a criminal. Any other girl who would go with him would be about as irritating to him as his exes. She chose to be with him and join in on the fun when he didn't expect that of her, and he was proud of her and impressed by her not being " boring and predictable " like the other Freedom Fighters, especially Sally, and instead complimenting him as a " free spirit. " She was the only one who understood him, who completely appreciated him for who he was. Not even Miles was entirely happy with him.

Finitevus was only offering one thing in return for losing her, a new power that in that situation, he realized he should be ashamed if he thought he would need it. His newfound confidence from his green transformation reminded him that he was already powerful enough. But choosing Finitevus is what would've been expected of him, as a villain with his bad boy reputation, and as an evil twin. A typical Evil Sonic. He could practically hear Sonic's voice potentially goading him, mocking him, " _Come on, do it! Do what you're known for! I don't expect anything else out of you. You'll never win otherwise, because you're nothing. So do it, Evil Sonic, live up to your name!_ "

He briefly looked scared before staring blankly as Fiona shot Finitevus with an electrocuting ray gun, making him fall to the metal floor of the dark room exhausted before forcing himself to his feet. " You're siding with her?! " he exclaimed, as Scourge found himself with a great big smile on his face in amusement at Fiona doing that.

Fiona punched Finitevus in the chest, and after some hesitation and panic from the fear of missing out on what he was offering him, Scourge rebelled against that fear by shouting passionately, " Yeah! " punching Finitevus just below the chin, and saying to Fiona, " You go, babe! " supporting her as Finitevus collapsed to the floor in front of him.

There was still some stress rushing through him as a part of him nagged and criticized him in an absolute frantic panic, " _What are you doing?! You know what you're givin' up?! You're losin' it!_ " But he refused to let himself be swayed by any nagging, including his own.

He exclaimed passionately putting his left foot on his chest, " I do what I want! What I feel like! That's my motto! And if you get in the way of that, then screw you! I never liked ya anyways! With your crazy ultimate plan. Always thought you were nuts! What was I thinking wasting my time with you? I _never_ needed ya _anyways!_ "

Fiona kicked Finitevus after that, her remaining stress transforming into gradual relief as she let it sink in that Scourge was truly loyal to her over him. Confused and frustrated, Finitevus questioned, " You're choosing your girlfriend over me? Your greatest benefactor? " wondering why he couldn't just get another one. Scourge, finally letting himself be proud of what he was doing, held Fiona in a sideways hug where she put her arms around his neck looking lovestruck, and said with a satisfied smile looking Fiona in the eyes affectionately, " Was there ever any doubt? " before looking at Finitevus and snarking with a smirk, " I'm not dating YOU! " Fiona chuckled at that, which endeared herself to him even more as she was the first girl to ever regularly laugh from his jokes. " _She's amazing,_ " he thought.

Finitevus, unable to get up from the floor after Scourge dealt some more blows to him, complained, " You didn't react this way when Rouge did the same thing! Why couldn't you simply find another woman for your teenaged hormones?! " Fiona looked surprised at hearing Rouge mentioned and Scourge simply explained, " I never really liked her anyways. Her personality was annoying, I just liked her for her looks. " Then he put his arm around Fiona again saying sweetly with a smile, " That's when I learned I preferred _redheads!_ " and kissed her holding her hand and face.

Scourge finished him off with a sonic kick as Fiona sighed happily at what happened earlier, thinking, " _Wow! He can be so sweet! Not even Sonic ever stood up for me that, epically!_ " briefly remembered unhappily when Sonic became judgmental of her for her past " affecting the now, " and her face fell as she looked depressed, causing Scourge to wonder what was wrong and look at her with a cocked eyebrow.

She had her head hung low and her eyes downcast. " I can't believe you really did that for ME. I thought for sure that I was throwing away everything, " she said melancholically, her voice cracking at the very end. He pitied her and smiled nervously with his hand briefly caressing the back of her head,

" Well, ya weren't. If I had made the wrong decision I would've thrown it all away, too, and for some guy I can barely stand! Lucky for us, I remembered my common sense, " tapping his head at the end with a smile. " I do what makes me the happiest, and that ain't gonna change any time soon! " She smiled a little, reassured, and he proceeded to use a Warp Ring saying, " We don't need any extra power for me to take over my planet again. If I acted like I NEEDED it, Sonic would never let me live it down! I don't need to be better than my absolute best. And I'll prove it. "

With that, they warped away. Later on, Scourge stole a spare zone-link teleporter from an alternate Rotor, with the reasoning that he can actually see what's at the other end of the portal with it as opposed to the Warp Rings, and decided to keep the Warp Ring generator in his pocket as a back-up on Fiona's suggestion. Eventually the two technologies got combined together.


	9. Chapter 9

After getting rid of another Robotnik together, Scourge and Fiona were on their way through an alternate Mobotropolis in the middle of winter when they encountered some civilians in an alley mentioning the name Antoine in their conversation. Out of curiosity, they stopped to eavesdrop, and heard a rat Mobian in a black jacket say, " I mean come on. Antoine, going to fight Ixis? I know he's mad because of what happened to Bunnie, but still! " A snake Mobian with glasses replied, " I saw him holding some Super Emeralds, at least. He may not be thinking straight, but he's still got a chance. " Scourge said to Fiona out of earshot, " Oh, this ought to be interesting. Come on, let's go find him, " and she nodded immediately, relieved at his suggestion.

Eventually, they came across an alternate Antoine wearing green instead of blue, collapsed unconscious in the snow just barely under the rubble of a destroyed building on the outskirts of the city. After Scourge pulled him out from under it, Fiona examined his condition sitting down beside him, and she revealed while holding his wrist, " He's alive, but ice cold and his legs are so badly bruised, it's a good chance they're broken. "

Scourge and Fiona jumped in alarm at a blue blur rushing up to and stopping in front of him, exclaiming, " 'Twan?! Fiona?! " To their relief, though, it wasn't the Prime Sonic, but an alternate version of Sonic wearing a crown on his head like a king. He checked his pulse frantically, and questioned, " Fi, who's this dude, what'd he do to him?! And why are you WITH him?! "

Scourge saw Fiona looking awkward about the situation, and corrected him looking annoyed, " Hey moron, you got the wrong girl. We're from another dimension. And I didn't do nothin' to him. " King Sonic, after turning his Antoine over on his back, said angrily, " Yeah, right, with your leather jacket and stuff? You're obviously bad news! " Feeling like he was being treated unfairly, Scourge complained, " If I was the one who roughed him up, don't 'cha think I'd be braggin' about it? No pride in braggin' when I didn't do nothin'! I heard someone saying he was goin' after some Ixis dude. Well, that Ixis must have got to him. " King Sonic gasped and exclaimed, " That must be why the building collapsed! Oh man, 'Twan, how long were you out in the cold like this? And, wait, what were you guys about to do to him, anyways? "

Scourge looked embarrassed from knowing the answer, with Sonic's taunt of him echoing in his mind as he remembered his smug face coming back to haunt him, saying in his thoughts, " _…a little selflessness, a little decency, and you'd be just like me._ " He shuddered a little at the thought that he was less of an individual because he was considering helping him for the heck of it, that his entire worth and foundation of his ego was put into question, but before he could say anything, Fiona screamed at feeling something whipping her in the back.

The two hedgehogs immediately turned to face her in alarm, and as she held onto her back in pain, the back of her black shirt cut in a thin vertical line, the one who hurt Fiona was revealed to be a spider Mobian wearing a ninja costume and holding a whip. Scourge immediately growled and punched him in the chest making him collapse, and brought his shoe down just below his chin at the speed of sound, and bounce-attacked him out of commission. But while he and everyone else were distracted, Fiona screamed again at something suddenly jabbing into the back of her arm, only missing something vital because she had moved. It was an icicle.

Some roaring laughter alerted them to the attention of a blue-robed menacing Mobian flying up to them from behind, sitting on top of a tornado. His hands were turned upwards with some icicles floating around him and his face was contorted into a creepy smirk, with a noticeable eye-patch above it.

Enraged, Scourge shouted, " What'd you do that for?! You're gonna pay for this! " He received the reply, " As if you didn't know who gave THIS injury to Ixis Naugus! " from the wizard pointing at his own eye-patch. With a strained voice, Fiona managed to talk despite the stinging pain, complaining while sitting with one knee facing the alley's pavement, " You got the wrong girl! Black clothes, _he's_ my boyfriend! Get a clue! "

King Sonic quickly ran in a tornado around the alternate Ixis Naugus saying angrily, " I drained some of your power, remember?! You're not immune to these anymore! " taunting him about his loss of the air element, and watched as he fell crashing to the pavement from the top of the tornado. Of course, he survived the impact, and Scourge, still angry about what just happened, shouted, " I'm not lettin' you get away with that! " and kicked him so hard running at him that he sent him flying across the road in front of him.

" Stop! At least get your girlfriend some help first! " King Sonic called out to him, rushing to standing in front of him with a placating hand gesture. Scourge was livid at first from being told what to do, especially by another Sonic, and didn't want anyone to keep him from taking his revenge on him, but soon he looked worried at hearing the second sentence, and turned to face Fiona, who was still very much in pain with the icicle in the back of her left arm. He remembered when she had destroyed all those missiles of Finitevus and he was expected to punish her for it, and he became very worried that this was going to be another time when he was going to have to choose between Fiona and something else. While taking his revenge would be standing up for Fiona, it was clear from her pleading look that she would consider him doing that first as a betrayal, and that he wouldn't have her safety in top priority and didn't really care about her. Not wanting anything like that to happen, and afraid of her potentially bleeding out, he said, " Don't worry, Fi, I'll get 'cha to the hospital. And hopefully I'll find him again later. "

Fiona, with a grateful smile, put one arm around Scourge's upper back to keep herself held closer to him as he lifted her into his arms being careful not to touch the sensitive part of her back. She would've put the other arm around him, too, but it was in too much pain for her to bear moving it. He brought her to the hospital in a green blur seconds later, and ran up to the clerk rat Mobian lady who was confused and alarmed at seeing a hedgehog moving as fast as Sonic show up. He said to her frantically looking serious, " My girl's got a shard of ice in her, she needs a doctor! Now! "

Once Fiona was finally brought to a room to get treated for her injury, Scourge reassured her in the doctor's room, " Don't worry, babe, I won't let him get away with this. I'll find a way to completely ruin him! Just wait here for a few hours, I'll be back. " As she smiled in contentment, Scourge kissed her on the forehead and cheeks as she was sitting on the patient's room sofa, and then couldn't help but kiss her on the lips as well, before leaving the room through his zone-link teleporter. Fiona cringed and grimaced as the icicle was carefully removed and she was given stitches, clenching her fist and wishing Scourge was there to comfort her, while understanding that he wouldn't have appreciated her squeezing his hand to deal with the pain, and probably left to avoid seeing her suffer like that. She was both annoyed with Scourge for not being there for the worst of it, and wondering if she deserved the suffering she was going through, after the pain she put Tails through. Out of all the things she did with Scourge, that was the one that always stuck out to her as the hardest to justify.

Scourge tried to go searching for the Ixis that had attacked Fiona, but to his immense frustration and disappointment, he couldn't find him anywhere. He ran out of the city after cursing his luck, and before he knew it, he was standing alone in the woods near the alternate Mobotropolis' outskirts, using his zone-link generator's portal to try to find out where Ixis was. His greatest enemy was his lack of patience, as there were so many different parts of the world that he could've been hiding in, that he quickly started searching in other dimensions looking through the portal. With his lack of experience with magicians, of course, he failed to take into account the idea that Ixis turned invisible. He scrolled through the list of dimensions with a light golden portal in front of him showing him what they looked like thanks to the zone-link generator. He held down some additional arrow buttons trying to see all sorts of different places in the various dimensions, stubbornly searching for any kind of information he could find on Ixis Naugus with no real plan in mind.

Eventually, the portal to Mobius Prime showed him the Scepter of Sealing, hidden in Rotor's lab, through sheer dumb luck on his part as he was hoping he might see Ixis attacking the heroes at the moment to get information on his weaknesses. Unfortunately for him, the Scepter was hidden inside of a very tight space, being inside of a compartment shaped like itself within a shelf. Scourge complained, " If it was in a closet or somethin', I could just warp in and out. Instead, I can't even reach my hand into a portal and grab it 'cause there's no room for it. Wait a minute… "

He noticed that there was a numbered dial on the shelf, meaning that there was a combination lock. He then sighed in exasperation when he realized that the chances that he could actually find out the combination through trial and error in less than 10 years were very slim, and he'd be better off destroying the entrance to the shelf. He noticed a blowtorch and welding mask nearby, and said, " I got an idea… "

He then stubbornly and persistently looked through the entirety of the planet he was standing in by using the portal, and eventually managed to find where the alternate Ixis was hiding, in a crystal cave near a coral reef in Downunda. " Got 'cha! " he said to himself with a smirk, relieved at finally finding him.

With that, he warped back to Fiona, who smiled at seeing him, although he noticed it was a strained one since she was still in a lot of pain. He asked looking worried, " How well can ya hold something with that arm? Can you still use a blowtorch? " Fiona, confused, briefly thought back to when she was working with Rotor, Tails and Tommy in the lab as a minor lab assistant, and said, " Yeah. I can hold it with my right hand and support it with my knees. The left one'll just slightly support it from below. As long as that thing I'm blowtorching is on the floor, I mean. Why? "

Scourge explained as she started holding his hand, " I was lookin' around dimensions with my portal when I found some sort of blue sceptre with some emerald shards in it hidden in a shelf in Rotor's lab. Problem is, I can't warp to it since the shelf's too small a space, can't even reach into the portal with my arm, so we'll have to blowtorch the shelf to get rid of it, or at least the combination lock. So you're gonna do that while I use my portal to show you where you SHOULDN'T be blowtorchin'. We can't risk damaging somethin' like that. Chances are, it'll be the perfect thing to use to get our revenge. " Fiona hesitated at first before saying nervously, " Alright, " and Scourge asked, " What's wrong? " looking annoyed.

" We're going to Mobius Prime so soon? What if the zone cops spot us, what if a fight with Sonic attracts their attention to us? I mean, I know you wanna go there eventually, but risking it twice? " Fiona asked nervously. She remembered what it was like when Scourge was in prison, all those long lonely nights. She missed him more than anything, and the worst part was the nagging feeling that leaving the Freedom Fighters had been a mistake purely because she lost Scourge, the only person who liked her for who she was, so quickly and might never get him back. She chose Scourge to get a more stable source of support and ended up alone anyways. Looking depressed, she admitted, " I don't wanna lose you again… " hoping that he wouldn't start a huge argument with her accusing her of overprotectiveness.

Scourge sighed heavily, and reasoned calmly, " Fi, I've escaped from Zonic way more often than not. He just got lucky last time! They're not depowerin' me this time. And besides, it's JUST for a couple of minutes. Seconds at best! I won't even talk to Sonic. It's too damn early, there's not enough to brag about yet. " He hoped she wouldn't notice the anxiety and discomfort in his voice towards the end; he didn't want to admit that he was afraid of Sonic getting him sent back to prison, to her or himself. It was the most miserable couple months of his life, and he still had nightmares. He didn't know if he'd be able to handle going back, as the last time almost broke him, making a scared and paranoid shadow of his former self until the one he loved the most snapped him out of it.

Fiona could notice that even he was nervous, the most fearless person she knew, someone she normally didn't even think of as being able to experience fear, but he noticed the slip-up and grinned before giving her a kiss, and reassured her with a smile, " We'll wait until nobody's in the lab or even the base. Like after dinner. Then we'll go in, nab the sceptre and get out. Come on, babe, let's get outta this place. I promised Frost I'd play frisbee with him today, " Frost being their nickname for the alternate Tails with ice powers that they introduced to the detective Sonic. Fiona smiled and nodded relaxing her shoulders, at least as much as she could when she had a stinging injury just below the back of one of them with bandages around it.

With that, Scourge used a portal to warp the two of them to another dimension. Scourge spent the rest of the day spending quality time with Frost Prower and then running at the speed of sound to rough up some random thugs for fun, while Fiona spent the day hanging out with the alternate versions of the Freedom Fighters from that dimension, who with their version of Robotnik defeated by Scourge and her, had nothing to worry about in terms of villains for the moment. They had taken back their castle from him and renovated it to no longer look like it belonged to Eggman, as the rogue couple found out right away when they were invited to it for dinner with the rest of the Freedom Fighters as honoured guests.

As the two were heading to the rather impressive-looking dining room of the castle where the recently crowned Queen Sally was waiting for them, they both had different feelings on the matter. Fiona was anxious about being judged by her for assisting in killing someone, even if it was her Robotnik, and thought her time would be dreadful, and Scourge was anticipating the same judgment, expecting her to be a nag, but looked forward to the no-doubt delicious meal he was going to be served, and the experience of smirking with absolute pride at the FN Sonic from the fact that he, not him, had beaten Robotnik. In his mind, he had proved his superiority to him, without even needing to beat him in a fight first.

When they took their reserved seats, with Scourge sitting between Fiona and Queen Sally while Fiona had Frost sitting beside her with a nervous smile, they were surprised at the expression on the young queen's face. It wasn't judging at all. Instead, it was more polite, regal and queenly as the chefs were finishing up making their lobster dinner.

Trying to stop the awkward silence that dragged on for a few seconds after all of the Freedom Fighters had taken their seats at the table staring at them, Fiona said to make conversation, " S-So, uh, you're a queen already? On my planet, the princess can only become the queen if she marries someone. My Sally almost got forced to marry Antoine just to get that position – or rather, Evil Antoine who replaced him without anyone knowing. "

To their surprise, Queen Sally had a pleased smile at them, stunning Fiona as she saw a Sally looking sympathetic instead of judgmental for the first time in over a year, as she replied, " Well, things are different here. Obviously, " and chuckled at herself stating the obvious. Fiona was so speechless at the pleasant treatment by a Sally that Scourge ended up saying something before she could, saying casually as the chef brought everyone their food, " A smile, huh? It's nice to see you appreciating us for what we did. Lotta people out there are judgmental. Especially some alternate versions of you! Why the warm welcome? "

Fiona looked at him in alarm, convinced that this brash way of speaking would offend her, but instead, Queen Sally replied looking like a reasonable authority figure, " Because while I personally wouldn't have felt like trying your _harsh_ methods, you got the job done. There's peace, and that's commendable all by itself. You both should be very proud of yourselves for freeing our world from that madman, no matter how you did it. "

Fiona was still too stunned at the pleasant and warm treatment to say anything, while Scourge simply smirked looking proud and said, " Already am! " lapping up the praise with his arms crossed purely because he was getting praised at all. He also couldn't get enough of the fact that a certain Sonic wearing a gray detective hat was glaring at him resentfully with his arms crossed. " I could've taken him down, too, y'know, and without that kind of grisly violence, " Sonic-FN pointed out with his eyes looking away from him irritated, finding the whole thing to be a bittersweet resolution. Scourge quickly responded with an amused smirk, " After ten years, " and leaned forwards a little saying, " My way's faster, " pointing to himself with his thumb.

Sonic-FN sighed in exasperation rolling his eyes full of resentment, as well as wounded pride at not only being beaten to the punch, but in being too slow at something. A Koala Mobian chef and some other chefs like him carried some plates with lobster, mashed potatoes and pork chops on them to everyone, making Scourge perk up excited at the thought and say, " Awesome, I love this! Let's dig in! " proceeding to start eating enjoying the food without waiting for Queen Sally to start eating her own first. Fiona was expecting this to be a faux pas, but Queen Sally let it slide, and explained still with that pleased smile,

" I fully understand why someone would go to such lengths to end Robotnik's tyranny once and for all, and while I'm glad I wasn't there to see it, I can't argue with the results. You're liberators of Mobius! That's why I'm ordering a statue to be made in your honour. Right outside the castle, to forever commemorate what you did for us! " Sonic-FN dropped his fork looking shocked and exclaimed, " A what?! " as Fiona looked stunned and dumbfounded, and of course Scourge was absolutely giddy at the idea of being praised and loved that much saying, " Awesome! Perfect, man, beautiful! About time people recognize me! Never got that kind of respect back in my own dimension. "

Sonic-FN replied angrily as the alternate Antoine, Tails, Rotor, and Bunnie all looked awkward at the argument and Sally seemed irritated, " That's because you mugged and beat up people on the streets! What do you expect when you're a criminal? That people are gonna just welcome you with open arms? "

Scourge retorted, " Most of those people are punks. Y'know, drug dealers and the like? They're askin' for it, " and said with a laugh at first, " and besides, you don't know the HALF of my rep, Sonic. I took over a whole _planet_ , once! And the only reason I didn't stick with ruling it is 'cause it was boring doing the actual king stuff. The actual getting there was the fun part and I did that all on my own, in a day, without breakin' a sweat! But screw actually runnin' the place, I mean, I don't even KNOW who's taken up the mantle now, and I don't really care. He'll be easily dealt with years from now when I go back to the place. "

The whole time Scourge was talking openly about what a villain he was in front of a bunch of Freedom Fighters, Fiona was incredibly awkward dreading the irritating and uncomfortable wave of judgment that he was bringing forth, and wished she could just sink into her chair and disappear. Frost said sounding hopeful, " So you're never gonna take over our planet because you'd find it boring trying to rule it? " Then Queen Sally said to them, " All the more reason to be thankful. My subjects have never been happier thanks to you. Although that's not to downplay the accomplishments of my group as a whole. A lot of robots needed to be destroyed and plans needed to be stopped. But you were the brave people who took down that madman for good! "

Sonic-FN complained, " Translation, I did most of the work. While they get all the glory. " Scourge smirked in amusement at the sight as he and Queen Sally argued, with the latter looking only mildly annoyed at him, being strikingly more calm and good-natured than the more battle-hardened Sally that Fiona was used to, to say nothing of her sadistic evil twin.

Queen Sally reasoned as everyone had their dinner, " You're still a hero, Sonic, people still really respect you. No one's ignoring any of that. " " But they're getting a _statue_ outside City Hall! " Sonic-FN complained outraged. " You already have 8 statues of you in the castle. " " Six! " " You should be better than this, letting petty jealousy- " she replied looking fatigued with him, and was interrupted by an indignant and sad reply, " But they're criminals! It's _not_ right! We're lucky they don't go on regular crime streaks on this planet! "

" Well, even if they did, I can't think of anything they could do that would invalidate liberating billions of people from oppression. Grow up, " Queen Sally deadpanned. As Fiona looked stunned and conflicted, she finally said getting increasingly more stressed out, " He's right, though. We don't care about laws. We both are pretty much daily criminals, and not just in the vigilante sense, I mean, I used to have to steal a lot to survive, like food and water and treasure for the sake of the cash, I even joined a gang and won an illegal fighting tournament! Why would you honour me with a statue? "

Feeling sorry for her as well as confused and dumbfounded that she wouldn't appreciate it, Scourge said to her, " Hey, you should appreciate it, babe, don't be so hard on yourself! Why say no to a free statue? Relax. " " He's right, " Queen Sally said, causing Fiona to drop her own fork looking at her completely stunned and blown away at it.

She continued, " Normally I wouldn't approve of criminals like that, but I'm reasonable enough to make an exception and recognize the great thing you did for our planet. Including you, Fiona. You were just doing what you could to survive, and the fact that you were humble enough to say all that just proves my point about you. You may not have been _one_ of us, but you were _always_ Freedom Fighters. "

Hearing that immediately brought back a depressing tearjerking memory of the bitter and resentful way her own Sally had spoken to her. " _You may have once been one of us, but you were never a Freedom Fighter,_ " she remembered her saying in a tone full of disapproval, bitterness, and disappointment in her. It had always stood out in such stark ugly contrast with the way Sally had always been polite to her, respectful and even slightly warm and friendly at the best of times, and shone as the perfect example of how things had changed, and why she couldn't see her as a friend to be missed anymore. But this alternate Sally stood out as a complete contrast to that shunning speech, and it made a combination of sadness and absolute joy completely overwhelm her as her eyes welled up with tears of joy, and she blurted out with a sad quivering smile, " You're the _nicest_ Sally Acorn I've ever met! "

Everyone in the room stared at her surprised and sympathetic at her sudden outburst of emotion, especially Scourge, which made her feel even more self-conscious and embarrassed than when Scourge had been bragging about what she normally considered his most admirable feat. Once again she found herself wishing she could just sink into her chair under the desk and disappear, escaping all of the stares and concerned whispers. Wanting to put an end to the awkward silence, which really wasn't the big deal she made it out to be as Sally had the biggest smile on her face from that compliment, she explained, " I-It's just that, wow that just came out of me, I'm not normally like this. I'm just not used to a Sally Acorn being that way to me. So accepting of who I am. Even though… I…. disappointed them so much… I left them, after all. "

Her thoughts wandered again as she looked back at her almost finished lobster sadly, with a nagging voice in her head sounding like Sally reminding her, " _Stop with the victim complex._ _You're a traitor, you moron, why do you THINK she hates you? You slapped Tails! You ditched them all! Sonic was accepting of your past, stood up for you in front of a whole bunch of his friends, even though she was giving you a death glare. Everything would've been fine if you hadn't fallen in love and screwed things up. And now they all hate you, and you'll never get any kind of friendship like that back._ " Fiona tried to think in response, " _Good riddance. If they didn't want me to follow my heart and be true to myself, then they weren't right for me, the judgmental traitors. They're the ones who let me down. Good riddance!_ " But she couldn't make herself form the bitter expression, because she was too overwhelmed by a feeling of melancholy at the undeniable absence and emptiness.

She thought sadly, " _Oh, who am I kidding? While I don't regret being with Scourge, since he's made me so happy, I still got used to having so many friends, and now there's a stupid, dumb void in my life that should just go away, but…_ " She sighed, and Queen Sally reassured her, " It's okay. You're clearly a nice person, more humble than your boyfriend here, and you did what was best for a planet that I wouldn't have expected you to care about. That means a lot to me that you'd do such a thing. You're being too hard on yourself. Criminal or not, for what it's worth, you'll always have a welcome place in my home. " She got up from the table finished her meal, carrying her dirty dish in one hand to save her servants some work, and Fiona had to fight back the urge to hug her, because she knew Scourge was watching, and she already felt self-conscious enough. She wanted to be a bad girl, who did what she wanted no matter what, but sometimes she couldn't be both, and wasn't sure which to choose.

When Queen Sally was walking back to her throne at the dinner table, Scourge said quietly, " Go ahead, Fi, " looking into her eyes with sympathy and understanding, and even taking care to put his hand on the shoulder that wasn't nursing a wound near it. She was shocked and speechless, still not used to the fact that Scourge accepted her so much for who she was, even the side of her that was the most like a Freedom Fighter. Even though he gave her his blessing, if only to humour her in what was clearly deep emotional turmoil, she still had to force herself to nervously get off her chair as Queen Sally walked up to her. But the minute she turned to face her and saw that happy smile, the emotions all just rushed back and she hugged her in a tearful embrace, which was returned immediately. Scourge looked around as a curious observer with his hand on his chin and noticed that aside from Sonic-FN, who looked just as stunned and conflicted about it as he did, everyone in the room was smiling finding the situation heartwarming.

With the hug ended at last, Queen Sally said, " Thanks, Fiona! And hey, even though Robotnik's gone, there's still a lot of work we have left to do. My father's still a roboticized sub-boss, for one, and the world still has Robotnik's underlings ruling various countries of it. You can come here for a visit any time you want with him. " Fiona, after a brief silence, asked with a smile, " How 'bout for lunch? " and was told, " Sure, why not? And again, you can even bring your boyfriend along. _He's_ the one who defeated him. No telling what he's capable of!"

Scourge said proudly, " You got that right! If ya ever want a _big strong man_ around to accomplish stuff since Sonic doesn't cut it, the _superior_ Sonic could always pop by for a visit, " with his arms behind his head satisfied at trolling the Sonic in front of him. To truly one-up him, he interrupted him preventing him from getting any sort of comeback, saying, " Fi, the clock up there says it's time, we gotta get goin'. We've gotta make that Ixis fellow pay for the way he hurt you! "

As Fiona took a few seconds to snap out of it and realize what he meant, everyone else in the room looked shocked at what he said about Ixis. And wanting to avoid any long-winded explanation, he quickly pressed the button on his teleporter for the portal and Fiona said, " Oh, right, " jumping into it with him.


	10. How to convince Fiona to be a hero again

After the alternate universe " Queen Sally " had her dinner with Fiona and Scourge where she had asked them to start helping them in Freedom Fighting missions, Fiona was still stunned at how lucky she had been as most of the people left the kitchen with empty plates. She had been given that offer because Scourge and her taking down her version of Robotnik for good earned her respect, and the respect of most of her team with only the alternate detective version of Sonic complaining about it.

But even though she had done something to earn it, using a paralyzing electric ray gun on Robotnik to make him helpless against Scourge, so he could keep increasing the number, she was still confused and insecure that she was even considered an acceptable potential Freedom Fighter at all. All she could do was think back to how she treated Tails.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when Queen Sally said politely, " Fiona? " " Oh! What? " Fiona said. Like last time she saw her, she wore a long yellow dress with a golden belt and tiara with a red jewel in the center, and had long red hair tied in a ponytail at the end, hardly the tomboy that Sally looked like in comparison. The only thing tomboyish was the sword scabbard tied to the back of her dress, which had a golden hilted sword sticking out.

She told her, " I'd like to have a word with you for a bit, alone. Since you're going to start participating in our freedom fighting, I want to talk about the best way to approach this for you. Scourge, I'd like you to wait in the living room with the others while we talk. " Scourge left his chair in the kitchen saying, " Alright, " and left the room, as Sally was grateful that he obeyed her order at all and was proud of herself for thinking to say, " I'd like, " when telling him to do something.

Now that she was alone with Fiona, she said with her hands clasped together and a calm expression, " This is going to be awkward for you, I suppose, but I need you to tell me why you left your old teammates. " Fiona went from looking merely nervous to stunned and bewildered, and said, " What?! But, I, you want me to become a Freedom Fighter again, but you want me to go on a long rant about why I gave up the last time?! "

Queen Sally explained, " I know it seems strange, but if I want to keep that from happening again, it's better to get to the root of the problem and fix it and nip any potential problems in the bud. Maybe I can't solve every problem you had, but I can at least try to fix most of them, but I can't do that if you don't tell me what those problems were. "

Fiona groaned and said nervously, " You're gonna get mad at me for going on an angry rant about my old friends. And then I'll get in trouble. The minute I call them self-righteous hypocrites, you'll probably glare at me just like Sally did! This IS awkward. Do I have to? " Queen Sally replied calmly, " I can't blame you for ranting about it. You obviously must have had very good reasons to leave the Freedom Fighters when you took down my version of Robotnik earlier, and of course those reasons would involve you being under a lot of stress, so I'll try not to call you out on it. That wouldn't be very fair, and I want to encourage you to be honest with me. I want you to know that you don't have to be afraid of telling me things. No offense. "

Fiona sighed, and since she had wanted to talk about such a thing ever since she first became friends with Scourge, she admitted, " Like I was with my old team. There's so much that I had to keep to myself 'cause I didn't want to get in trouble. I was never a pure good, righteous hero like them! I was a criminal! I had to steal to survive. That's what happens when your parents move on without you, after you're put in a jewel mining slave camp as a KID. "

Queen Sally felt sorry for her as she started to resentfully rant, " I joined the Freedom Fighters so I could have a steady income from the king so I wouldn't have to steal my way through life anymore. And when the Freedom Fighters found out that I used to work for some people that just attacked their new base for Robotnik, Sally glared at me for even knowing them, even though that was right AFTER my knowledge of them from earlier helped them win the fight! I'll NEVER forget how she looked at me. Every time I think of her, that glare comes right back to haunt me! Not a single thank you, even though I got Bean to get off of Sonic's head, and got Bark to stand down which probably saved my friends a lot of bruises. ALL she did was ask how I knew those two! And when I tried to get some gratitude from her, she was just like, ' That's not the point. ' She was usually not LIKE that! So it really stuck out to me! All she ever did was glare at me after that, she didn't say a single word to me. "

She continued, " And sure, Sonic stood up for me. He said I was a welcome part of the team. But one, that acceptance and trust didn't last, and two, he was the ONLY one who even tried! Everyone else was completely SILENT, and barely said a word to me after that. I hated being the center of attention there. I hadn't worked with those losers Bean and Bark in over a YEAR and she still held it against me. All we did was take some jewels so I could get money to feed myself, it's not like we worked for Robotnik! "

Queen Sally, not being sure what exactly to say, simply said, " See, there you go, you're telling me your reasons already! She made a big mistake treating you like that. You'd think that basic common decency would tell someone that when their teammate does something to help them, the first thing they should be focusing on is THANKING them, NOT on finding a reason to hate and judge them after you JUST PROVED you could be trusted and relied on! Showing gratitude, that's not just being a good friend, that's being a good leader! I don't want to go on for too long about this, the point is, I promise you'll never have to go through that with me. I'm at least smart enough to realize that a leader should be POLITE to her teammates, especially when that leader is ROYALTY. That's how a proper princess would act. I hope you're right that she usually wasn't like that. "

Fiona sighed, and Queen Sally continued nervously, " Now, I can't guarantee you that my Sonic wouldn't judge you for your past – after all, he was complaining about you two all dinner. But at least most of his complaints will be focused on Scourge, and he's not exactly having his feelings hurt over it. He's taking it in stride and teasing him about it, which is a minor annoyance that's gonna be worth having two Sonics on the team. Most of my team is polite enough to not bother you about your past. You're going to be helping us and that's all we care about. So, we've gotten your biggest incentive for leaving out of the way, right? I mean, you did mention it first. So that's a good start. "

Fiona said unhappily, " Well, it is the thing I always think about when I look back on why I ever left. I mean, it's not like I didn't like freedom fighting! I loved getting to spite Robotnik at every chance I got, but it was hard to enjoy myself on missions when I didn't really get to DO anything that mattered! There were a lot of times after Sonic came back from space where I felt like I could've just STAYED HOME! And that's really discouraging! Before he got sent to space, when we all thought he had died, I spent most of my freedom fighting time on missions to leave bombs in robot factories and smash the various robots that threatened Knothole. But it became harder for me to do the latter when Rotor got it in his head that building weapons to HELP the Freedom Fighters was WRONG! Basically, he made a bunch of fire happen with this big mecha he was riding, and because of ONE mistake, he vowed to never make another weapon again. I couldn't tell anyone back there, but that REALLY pissed me off! I thought he was supposed to be SMART! "

Queen Sally replied, " I don't blame you, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! And don't worry, I won't get on your case for the occasional swear. I'm not that judgemental. My Rotor's always made weapons for us. Sonic doesn't need them, but everyone else needs all the help they can get, so we all have some kind of way to shoot lasers. Even Antoine's sword can do that. And of course, he makes our bombs too. You can't fight dictators without them! I can't see how your Freedom Fighters expected to fight Robotnik without any explosives to blow up his stuff. That's standard issue in every mission. How else are you supposed to carry out freedom fighting? "

Fiona, who was briefly embarrassed at her slip-up of casually swearing, continued, " Thanks for taking my side. My point is, while I WAS excited to start sticking it to Robotnik finally, it became pretty hard for me to feel like I was making a difference. Not only because Sonic came back, because there were tons of other Freedom Fighters besides him around that hogged all the glory and usefulness. The first mission since Sonic came back, Bunnie singlehandedly stopped Robotnik's plan to launch some missiles, which made me wonder why I even showed up after a while. She could've done the whole mission HERSELF. I went into this group and I immediately felt redundant and wondered why they accepted me into it at all! I spent my whole time there surrounded by Freedom Fighters who were not only a lot more experienced than I was at fighting Robotnik, but also had special powers or talents that I could never dream of having, that usually involved making fighting robots a snap, while me, with my regular powers and fists, couldn't even make a dent in their armor without a weapon. "

She ranted quickly, " And when I DID find a weapon, Rotor told me I wasn't allowed to have it because it was a gun! Even though I'd only be using it against ROBOTS! What, did he feel SORRY for the robots?! He said it wasn't their way. All that told me was that they cared more about their IMAGE than actually being as effective as they could at fighting Robotnik! I picked that rifle up and I was like, ' Now this is my idea of a robot-buster! ' But NO! That would be too cool apparently! "

Queen Sally reassured her, " I don't mind you using a rifle or something against robots. They're just robots. It's just that I expect robots to be bulletproof, and sometimes they're not, like the weaker badniks, but usually it's better to use lasers. I could always have Rotor make a ray gun for you that looks exactly like that rifle you wanted. I could call it the Robot-Buster. "

Fiona said hopefully, " Really? You'd do that for me?... " Then she sighed heavily, and said, " But Julie-Su already HAS a ray gun. Any time they wanted that, they just called her. I never had any chance of standing out. " Queen Sally told her, " Don't worry, on my planet Julie's always with Knuckles on Angel Island. But I see what you mean, since I just said most of my team has projectile weapons. "

Fiona explained, " When I first started hanging out with Scourge – nothing serious, we just watched movies on the couch together – he offered to power me up with the Master Emerald. He did it himself, after all. But I couldn't get Knuckles' dad to agree to it. He just lectured me about how power comes with responsibility and he didn't trust me not to go wild with it. But one of the reasons he used got to me because I knew it was right; I didn't know what I wanted. I still can't think of any power or talent I could have that would make me really useful to the team! Besides, even if I did power myself up, I was sure that everyone in my team would just be creeped out and lecture me about it, and Scourge said that if they were really gonna lecture me about becoming more useful to my team, then I deserve better! He said it was just another way they were acting like idiots. No wonder they needed Snively to get rid of Robotnik. And they just take the credit for it and talk as if Sonic beat him! "

Queen Sally found it intriguing. She thought, " _She left because she wasn't being useful enough? Huh, rather than being sick of helping them, she was sick of not getting to help them enough. Did she think she wasn't good enough for them? Was that literal?_ " Fiona complained, " Sure, I loved getting to spite Robotnik. He deserved it for keeping me trapped in a cell for two years! He and Snively both needed to do something better with their lives! And I made sure to tell Snively that! But what's the point of me helping if I wasn't even making a difference? I was just a normal girl! The only time I felt like what I did mattered was when I defended Mina's concert from some Bombs, and I was hardly the only one doing that! Aside from getting Bean to stop attacking Sonic by distracting him with shiny keys, everything I did could be done by someone with nothing special about them at all, like ANTOINE, for example. The fact that they got on without me just fine until I joined was all the proof I needed from the start that they didn't need me! "

She said sadly, " The only reason they let me on the team was because they wanted all the help they could get. They were desperate, especially after Sonic got sent to space. Maybe I came there with the worst of timing. They already had the original members, like Bunnie, Antoine, Sally, Rotor, Nicole, Tails. Then after Angel Island got taken over, the Chaotix switched to being in Knothole full-time, so they had Espio, Knuckles, Mighty, Ray, Julie-Su, Vector! Sonic's uncle Chuck helped out with the engineering in the Brain Trust too. Later on Sonic added Tommy Turtle of all people to the team, and sure he was a nice guy but he was such a wimp, and he was yet another engineer on the team making me redundant. Occasionally we had Geoffrey and Hershey to help too. That's, HOW many members?! Maybe if I joined a lot earlier I would've felt better, but I didn't even know their team existed yet! "

Queen Sally reassured her, " Don't worry, we don't even have a ' Chaotix ' over here. Whatever that is. That's the weirdest word I've ever heard. " Fiona clarified, " I mean Espio, Mighty, Charmy, Ray, Vector and Julie-Su. " " They don't live anywhere near Mobotropolis and Knothole. They're not even friends with Knuckles here, and we only know about them because he mentioned them to us once after his trip to Carnival Island. Charmy's a prince in Goldenhive, Vector's from Downunda, Mighty and Ray are from Furville and Espio's on Angel Island. I've never heard of Hershey. Tommy's too scared of getting hurt to be a Freedom Fighter. And Geoffrey's always busy with his own freedom fighting group separate from us, the rebel underground, though with Robotnik gone, they'd have to change continents to keep it up. "

Queen Sally smiled confidently and said in determination, " Like we're going to. My team's not about to give up fighting for freedom just because OUR kingdom's been freed, especially not since Antoine's father is still the roboticized sub-boss in Mercia. So that's our next destination, and of course we've got the plane to get there, and with the addition of your teleporter, things will be even easier! " If Fiona had known how Sonic's team handled their time without a Robotnik, she would've said that was a more admirable and smart direction for her team to take that made more sense for a team of freedom fighting heroes. But instead she took it for granted that they would do that next and simply smiled, as Queen Sally finished saying, " My team's a lot smaller than yours was when you were with them. So I guess that means, if you ever wanna power up with an Emerald, you've got a much better chance of standing out properly, because here there's a lot less special powers that are already taken. There's just super speed, super strength, and flight. And ice powers, courtesy of the two-tailed fox you got back to our team. "

Fiona said on confusion, " Got back? We found him in the forest on an island. " Queen Sally explained nonchalantly, " He got sent to an island with amnesia by Robotnik earlier. The jerk was trying to hit Sonic with that ray, but Miles, I mean Frost, pushed him out of the way, and Sonic made sure that ray was shattered to pieces afterwards, along with all the hard-to-find materials he used to make it. Frost was with me and Rotor when I first asked Sonic to join my team. Sorry I didn't tell you earlier, I just assumed you knew. If you had talked to Sonic and gotten to see his conversation with him, you would've found out they already knew each other. "

Fiona looked sheepish and embarrassed for not knowing that Detective Sonic already knew a Tails, facepalmed, and said, " Now I feel silly. I was so shy and awkward about doing something good for an alternate Sonic that I completely missed out on that! I wish I paid more attention. I just assumed things would be the same in the alternate universe as it was with Scourge's planet, so I didn't think I needed to hear what they said. Well, don't tell Scourge that. He really was proud of getting him to have friends. It was like when he first met Miles all over again and he liked getting back to old times! "

She realized she was going off topic, and complained, " I guess I made my point. Maybe if the Freedom Fighters didn't have so many damn people on their side, like the Chaotix, but even THEN, I was just a normal girl, so no matter how small the team was, I wouldn't feel like they needed me. The only talent I had was already done better by every engineer on the team. Who cares that I can do some hacking? The last time I tried, I managed to activate a trap that got me and my friends electrocuted for a while! "

Queen Sally said, " Well, if you don't want to feel redundant, you're better off doing solo missions. " Fiona slightly perked up just from hearing that, thinking it was a brilliant idea, and wished that Sally had thought of that right away as she continued, " You could use some gadgets like bombs or a USB drive with a virus, and use those against factories. You could go on missions where you're the sole person being relied on for something, where everyone else is too busy with something else, so you'll KNOW that we needed you, that NOBODY ELSE could've been there to do what you did. I'll try my best to think of things for you to do, and you can tell me how much free time you want in a day. I know it's gonna be really tricky to fix this problem since you're right, you're not super special, but that's why I need to make sure you're doing a LOT for us to compensate. "

Fiona, who didn't want to get too excited over false hope, smiled nervously and said, " Thanks. Quantity over quality, I guess. That's still better than NOTHING. I just hope we can convince Scourge of that arrangement, 'cause the whole reason he encouraged me to leave so much was so he could spend most of every day with me. "

Queen Sally reassured Fiona, " Maybe he'll be so focused on freedom fighting missions that he won't even mind that you're somewhere else. He'll be having so much fun destroying robots and buildings that he might not even notice you're gone. " Fiona said sadly, " The biggest reason I liked hanging out with Scourge was that, well the biggest one was that he was actually _friendly_! I wouldn't have wanted to spend time with him if he was a jerk to me. But what he had over my friends was that I could tell him all about the thefts I did in the past and trust him not to make me feel bad about myself. And he was just as excited and curious about that as he was about my time as a Freedom Fighter! He's the only person I can really be myself around. So I couldn't form a real, close bond with ANY of the Freedom Fighters because I couldn't tell them all about me, and I didn't want them to think of me as just a bitter cynic. So they just thought I was a bland nice girl until the end. I never felt like they knew the real me, and even now, they just demonize me. I bet they wouldn't put ANYTHING past me. So they'll never really understand me. But I guess that's my fault for never telling them. "

She complained, " I doubt I could ever share my old memories with you guys. You'd just look awkward and judge me for it, when it wasn't even my fault! It's not like I COULD get a real job back then because I was barely a teenager and didn't get to go to high school, so even if I knew how to make a resume, who would've hired me? Sure, Knothole had a homeless shelter, but I didn't know that place existed back then until I stumbled into it! So I need to have Scourge with me so I can have someone to really talk to every once and a while. He'll stay with me no matter what I tell him! With you guys, I'm gonna have to be careful! I always felt like the Freedom Fighters were just using me as a spare Freedom Fighter. The only time we had a moment of friendship of any kind was when we all put our hands together once. "

Queen Sally reassured her, " You have nothing to worry about, Fiona, I know that you had to do that to survive. And we wouldn't want to get Scourge mad at us, and we wouldn't let you stay if we didn't want you around. We know that if we want Scourge helping us, we have to keep you around, too! You'll always have Scourge to talk to about your past if you're not comfortable talking about it with anyone else. I promise I won't get into the habit of judging you for your past. It doesn't matter anymore, and I think it's interesting at the very least. And if anyone else tries to insult you, I'll scold them for it. Sonic's an arrogant jerk who usually just cares about the mission, so don't take what he says to heart. Most of us aren't mad at you, just confused that you want to help. "

She briefly stroked her shoulder to comfort her as Fiona was looking worried and doubtful, and continued, " Frost still really respects you for saving him from that island Robotnik sent him to. It's gonna take some time for my team to warm up to you, but I know I can promise you this. I'll try to be your friend. I mean, if there's anything you want to talk about that you wouldn't want to talk about with Scourge, I'll always be here. I have a feeling I'm a lot more open-minded and pragmatic than the Sally you know. Otherwise, I wouldn't have let two convicted criminals on my team without even blinking! Some would just think that's foolhardy, and reckless, but there is no freedom fighting without risk, and I'd rather take the risk and reap the rewards! "

Fiona smiled at her in respect for her fun attitude at the last sentence, and Queen Sally reassured her, " And I know Miles likes you. So does Bunnie. She's pretty idealistic, so she's just happy you're here. Antoine's worried, but he's a coward so what else is new? Don't take it to heart. And Rotor's not the rude judgemental type either, so he'll be polite. He's just scared of Scourge. I think Scourge will get most of the brunt of it and only in the sense that they'll be afraid of him, but we'll get used to you both. It'll be way easier to get used to and trust his harmless-looking girlfriend who just wants us to like her. So is there anything else that bothered you? I know I need to have you on solo missions, and missions with just Scourge at most. "

She continued, " And as for the close bond part, I'll make SURE you're invited to any fun get-togethers we'll have. Like the next time we go out for ice cream sundaes, I'll call you up! Of course, I'll have to get Rotor to make you a cell phone that we could contact you with. Contacting you from other universes would be more tricky, though. Maybe you should make it a routine where we all meet up every breakfast at my castle. That's what the rest of the team does, we go to a meeting where I tell them the plan. And we can all go to the carnival when it opens up next month. "

Fiona said, " You really do think of everything. They do sound like good ideas. I don't think it'll take that long for your team to free the whole planet though when Scourge has a teleport device. Can't we just warp to every sub-boss and send them to wherever we want? Then we can take them down at our leisure. " " And then they'll have replacements in a week. We need to take down the overall structure built around them, the dictatorships, or it'll just cause a power vacuum and their subordinates will fill it up. And I've already got my hands full with Mobotropolis. "

" But doesn't your world consist of mostly just mindless robot slaves? Or have they all been deroboticized? " Fiona asked. " Most of the world's population are Robians, but we found out the hard way that just getting rid of a sub-boss doesn't fix everything. When Crocbot was taken down, we learned that a replacement for him had been sent in from one of the other sub-bosses, and when we knocked out a Robian to investigate their programming, it turned out that the Robians have programming in them where if it turns out something happened to their leader, their number one priority will change to getting a replacement, and obviously that means ' a replacement that's on Robotnik's side, ' so I didn't count. And in the event that none of the Robians could contact a sub-boss, like if we got rid of all of them and that's why, the Robians would still be robots, they'd still be programmed to try to attack and roboticize anyone organic in sight. Long story short, we need to solve the roboticization problem or we'll never get the world fixed up. "

She explained, " We appreciate you and Scourge taking down Robotnik, but he's not the only problem with Mobius. We need to get rid of the last of Robotnik's influence, and removing the sub-bosses won't fix that when most of the world only accepts robots as their leaders and would wanna replace them the minute one of them noticed their absence. That's why the biggest part of our cause is deroboticization; destroying roboticizers and stealing parts from them, and getting people deroboticized. Since we've been doing this for so long, we've already got a machine that can convert metal into organic equivalents for people, and Rotor knows how to reprogram Robians to get free will, but we can only do that on a one-by-one basis. So even with a deroboticizer, our progress is pretty slow with millions of people on the planet. But don't worry, there'll be tons of action for you and Scourge to have fun with. "

Fiona admitted, " I can't wait until this ' mindless robot drone ' problem is a thing of the past. I didn't like it either. The only people I could live around for most of my life were some of the very few cities that DIDN'T get roboticized, like I spent some time in the Dragon Kingdom which took forever to get threatened with that. You can't steal much to eat from a city with nothing but robots in it, especially not when they all want to go after you. And Scourge hates roboticization too. He said that Robotnik wanting everyone to be his mindless slaves just reminds him of his dad and he isn't comfortable with the idea of everyone being a creepy robot. So I'll help with the deroboticization efforts. You just have to tell me what to do. If it makes you feel any better, everyone got deroboticized back on my planet. I just don't know HOW. The only people I asked didn't know who did it for them, so I can't help you there. "

If Fiona had known that the Sword of Acorns was able to restore free will, she would've suggested using it to Queen Sally, who always walked around with it in a golden scabbard tied to her yellow dress, but unfortunately, she hadn't been around Knothole when Sally was doing that. And Queen Sally had no way of knowing the Sword of Acorns restored free will, as Ixis Naugus had never been released because her friends weren't stupid enough to send a rideable probe into the Void; and since the king had been made a roboticized sub-boss instead, they had no reason to bother with the Zone of Silence at all.

And because Fiona also wasn't aware of how most of her planet got deroboticized, she couldn't tell them about the Bem's deroboticization technology, not that she would know how to contact the Bem of this zone and convince them to help regardless since she didn't know where they lived. If she had known about Eggman using legionization, she would've warned Queen Sally that even roboticization being taken care of wouldn't save the world if people were still being given cybernetics with explosives in them that forced them to obey. Obviously, Fiona had missed out on a lot.

Queen Sally thought, " _Now that I know that I have to get her attached to us so she won't WANT to leave…_ " and asked her, " What other problems did you have with them? You must have had a lot of things bothering you to make you stop fighting Robotnik. " Fiona replied, " Yeah, especially after the kind of grudge I have against him, though the Robotnik from my own zone got killed and replaced by another one, so the one they have to deal with now isn't the same one who locked me in a cell for two years. I still hate Robotniks on principle though. But it was hard to feel like I was making a difference when I was fighting him. Eventually I wondered, what's the point of destroying his Swatbots and robot factories when they get rebuilt every time? It's not like we can blow them all up at once because if we leave bombs in factories, eventually they'd get discovered on inspection before we could try to set off the detonator. "

" How do they keep getting rebuilt after everyone on your planet was deroboticized? " Queen Sally asked looking discouraged. " There will always be people willing to do what Robotnik says because they're scared of him. They don't have to be mindless robots to wanna protect themselves from him. Plus he's still got robots, just not Robians, " Fiona replied bitterly.

Queen Sally explained seriously, " So that's all the more reason we need get everyone deroboticized, or at least a majority of people. Even in a world with no Robians, even if we deroboticized a sub-boss in a position like that, if there's other sub-bosses out there, the people of the freed country would let the replacement dictator rise to power out of fear. After all, what are they supposed to do against a robot? Sub-bosses are made of a lot tougher stuff than a regular badnik, and what's worse is that all of them except Crocbot are roboticized people, so destroying them would mean destroying an innocent person. I hope I can keep Scourge from doing that when we have to deal with Robians. But something tells me all I'll have to do is offer to give him chili dogs later. "

Fiona thought, " _I hope she's right. He has to know how much this means to me! He wouldn't do something that would keep him from getting to go on those missions again._ " She nodded in agreement to reassure Sally. She had already started to relax from showing her bitterness with people to her and getting away with it without an idealistic lecture. She had assumed Queen Sally would insist that most normal people wouldn't let a sub-boss go back to ruling over them out of cowardice, but to her surprise, she had agreed with her. Feeling more safe about being honest about herself let her relax enough to give her more information.

Fiona went into a rant, " I'm glad you were smart enough to realize that most people WOULD feel powerless and let a sub-boss take over again, 'cause my old team were a bunch of overly idealistic idiots sometimes, especially the idiots part. There was this one time when Bean and Bark invaded the base, like I told you earlier. Well, you probably assumed that when they lost the fight to the Freedom Fighters, they got tied up and arrested, right? Nope. Somehow when they got distracted by a big robot, NONE of them ever thought to restrain Bean and Bark so they couldn't walk out of the base no problem! Not even Antoine stuck around to do that! You'd think one of them would, since none of them were doing anything to help in the fight, but instead of tying them up and calling the police, every single one of them just stood there and stared at Croctobot! Not even Bunnie did anything to help fight, even though she could've handled him no problem! To be fair, I was watching the robot too, but that was because I assumed that someone like Antoine already restrained them! I thought they were already in handcuffs or tied up! "

She complained, " It really annoyed me that they just ended up walking away and getting off scot-free! It just made them look really incompetent. And I could never call them out on screwing up like that without looking like the bad guy! Scourge said later that if they couldn't handle being called out on for their mistakes, that was their fault and they'd just keep getting dumber! Uh… sorry, I didn't mean to sound so unsympathetic. It's not like I hated them back then. They just made some stupid mistakes, like not letting me have a rifle. "

Queen Sally replied, " I can't blame you for being frustrated, that WAS stupid of them. But to be fair, if YOU assumed Bean and Bark were tied up by the team, don't you think it's possible that everyone else assumed the same thing? With so many different Freedom Fighters there, maybe it makes sense that they'd all assume at least ONE of them would've had them restrained properly. And with a giant robot in front of them, maybe some of them forgot about Bean and Bark. They'd be so much smaller than that, and be seen as the weaker threat at the moment. But seriously, don't worry, my team isn't that stupid. I make sure of that. I'm letting your boyfriend help, aren't I? With his super speed, I'd be an idiot to pass that up! "

Fiona explained sadly, " Part of the reason I left my team was because I knew they were gonna kick me out for even hanging OUT with Scourge. It's not like I was with them since they were kids, so I always felt like I was on the lowest rung to BEGIN with because I was really new. I never told them if I had an idea because who would listen to me? I guess I never felt respected, not compared to Sonic and Sally. And while it wasn't so bad when nobody knew about me and Scourge, when Tails found out, it just got even more stressful, because I knew that any day, he'd end up blabbing my secret to someone else. And he DID! He told Amy all about it and got her going after me with a hammer! At that point, why would I feel SAFE with them anymore? Granted, he told Amy HIS version of the story. He was under the impression that I was already dating him back then. Maybe I should've told him everything and elaborated on things. Maybe then he'd have known there was nothing to worry about and he didn't have to tell anyone. That was my fault for not going to talk to him afterwards. I really should've done that, logically, but I knew it'd be really awkward and difficult, and he'd never really understand. He'd just think I was being overly idealistic about Scourge and worry anyways! "

She sighed, and said sadly, " The truth was, I only started dating Scourge AFTER Sonic glared at me suspiciously and LIED to me that it was cool! Scourge and I were just friends back then, and since he taunted Sonic that I wasn't serious about him, he obviously started to have doubts about me. After all, how would Scourge know that if I wasn't already associated with him? He didn't know that we were just friends! I didn't want to cheat on Sonic when I wasn't even sure I preferred Scourge yet! I was at the point where I valued my ties to BOTH of them! When I started to worry that even Sonic was losing faith in me, when he was the ONLY PERSON on the team who was actively putting faith in me, well, it should be obvious why I went with Scourge. He was the only real friend I had left at that point! I had nothing over there! No friends, no respect, no status, no real, value to the team. And there was no point telling them I felt that way because they'd all just insist I was wrong! They'd never understand! "

She explained, " It's not like I really WANTED to take that drastic option. Leaving the team entirely was the most extreme of last resorts, it was basically throwing in the towel when I knew it was all hopeless. If they found out I was with Scourge and were cool with it, I would've had NO reason to stop going on their missions! I knew that the Freedom Fighters had too much of a grudge against Scourge to take my word for it that he wasn't that bad! They'd just insist he was lying and I was delusional, and I'd be furious at being treated like I'm just an idiot, though that's not so different from how they think of me NOW. It's not like you guys where you have no past experience with him at ALL! He had already had a history of fighting their Sonic, he had already made some mistakes. And he admitted to me that he wasn't exactly proud of them himself. Why would he, they all backfired on him. But I had no reason to think Sally would understand that. She's way too paranoid to put faith in Sonic's evil twin, especially not after Snively mysteriously disappeared from the Freedom Fighters, and everyone assumed he went back to Robotnik! Yeah, they took in Snively as a Freedom Fighter. I told you they were desperate. "

After Queen Sally looked shocked from the revelation at the end, she said, " Snively? So, did they have to deroboticize him? " Fiona shook her head in confusion, and explained with a sad and regretful expression and tone, " They would've been able to keep me around if they made a compromise with me and made Scourge a Freedom Fighter too, but I felt like any chances he had were ruined when Snively left Knothole, not that I'd have any faith to begin with. So I got to a point where it was either him or them; they'd find out eventually and kick me out anyways, and I did NOT wanna be abandoned AGAIN! It's bad enough my old partner Nicolette ditched me! Scourge made it clear that he was gonna keep visiting me for a movie night regardless. He just wanted to be with me full-time, and I couldn't do that AND stay with them when they would never give him a chance! "

As Queen Sally could clearly tell how unhappy Fiona felt, she continued while looking remorseful, " If I could do things over again, I would've taken the risk and forced myself to just explain EVERYTHING to them, just sit down with them in the base and tell them about my time with Scourge, and ask them to make him a Freedom Fighter. And if they still decided to be jerks to me after that, then I would've had no reason not to leave because I'd know for SURE that they weren't my real friends. "

She complained, " Real friends would want me to be HAPPY, and accept me for who I am, past and all! Not vilify me as a traitor! But apparently being considerate and giving a former enemy a chance is EVIL now. So they would've lost all trust in me the minute I'd have told them I started hanging out with him. What if they wouldn't have even given me a chance to explain?! I just hate that I don't know that for SURE! I've hated looking back on that day for months because I acted so hastily and BARELY explained my decision at ALL, and I just came off to Sonic like someone who got sick of being a hero and only stuck with it for him! I can't believe he bought that because I had been a Freedom Fighter long before I started dating him. But now they all just think of me as a monster! "

Queen Sally commented, " And it's a lot more complicated than that, obviously, " agreeing with her. Fiona complained, " I wish I just explained everything to them instead of waiting for Sonic to find out the HARD way at the very last minute because of Scourge! Because now I'm gonna spend the rest of my life not knowing if they would've been reasonable with me. Because if they would've, then, I had made a mistake… " She whispered the last sentence with her head hung low and tears came out of her eyes because she was so ashamed of admitting it. It wasn't easy for her to say that after all that time of insisting that going with him was what she wanted.

Queen Sally was open to both possibilities. She could see how both of them could be true, but since she wanted to make Fiona feel better first and foremost, she put her hand on her shoulder and reassured her, " Maybe you're right. They had nothing but bad experiences with Scourge. Maybe they were too biased against him by that point to even consider that he would make a good Freedom Fighter. You're much better off going with US because we don't have any past grudge against him, and we only ever knew you as his girlfriend. They're never gonna get used to it with you because they knew you before you started dating him. Now you're just being yourself, in fact I bet you're being more honest right now than you ever were! Things worked out for the best. If you had stayed with them, you would've never ended up with me, and I have a feeling you're going to like me a lot more than the judgemental and paranoid Sally you used to know. "

Fiona snarked with a nervous smile, " You're definitely better-dressed, " trying to loosen up around her because she knew she could get away with insulting her old friend to her that time. Queen Sally smiled at the compliment, and said, " Sure, it took a long time to get here, but it was all worth it in the end. You're better off now than when you started. Even if they would've humored you, I doubt they'd ever be happy about it, and you're better off in a team that DOESN'T resent you. Sure, most of us are just ambivalent to you, but that's gonna change when we warm up to you later. You can't expect people to like you right AWAY. And besides, if the way they think about you really bothers you, you could always, at least send them a LETTER. You wouldn't have to see their reactions and worry about them not believing you because you'd be in another dimension when they were reading it. "

Fiona was quiet, seeming to consider it, and said after a couple seconds, " I, I don't want them to miss me. " Queen Sally felt awful for her and said, " Being a bit too hard on yourself there, aren't you? You're not that awful! From what I've seen, you're a perfectly fine girl! " Fiona explained sadly, " If they knew I was feeling bad about how I acted when I left, if they DIDN'T think I was completely evil, they might start to miss me, or at least Tails would, 'cause he had one hell of a crush on me. If they thought I was having second thoughts about my decision, they might miss me, but thinking I'm just some traitor they're better off without is probably what's made my absence a lot EASIER on them! That's part of why I let them think what they think about me; they can't miss someone if they think there's nothing to miss. Though I think the only one who'd ever miss me at this point is Tails. Even the minute I was about to leave, he still had enough faith in me to try to talk me out of it, when the whole reason I was leaving them was because they DIDN'T have faith in me, that they just thought of me as a former criminal! Part of the reason I, uh, mistreated him when I left, was because I wanted to DISTANCE him from me so he'd stop wanting me around, so it wouldn't hurt that I left. "

She sighed heavily, and admitted, " I felt awkward about his crush when I found out about it. He was a kid, he couldn't date me! It was creepy! But I kept my annoyance with it to myself so I wouldn't look like a jerk, and eventually I guess that bottled up frustration with it exploded out of me, and I did something impulsive in the hopes that I'd snap him OUT of it finally, and I wish I had handled things differently! I should've just explained things to him properly and put him more at ease. But I knew that nothing I said would get him to stop trying to talk me out of it. He'd just say that the Freedom Fighters weren't that judgemental and they'd never kick me out of the team. He was too naïve to understand. "

Worried about how vague Fiona was being, Queen Sally asked, " You didn't injure Tails, did you? " " No, of course not! He's fine now! I'd never go that far! I just… well, it's not a ' just. ' He was really upset about it. I was trying way too hard to impress Scourge and it turned out I didn't even need to do it. I asked him a while ago how he would've reacted if I had just let him down GENTLY, and when he told me he wouldn't have gotten mad at me, I, I felt like an IDIOT. I, I… I don't wanna talk about it. Just know that I didn't injure him. I just, broke his heart. I told him he couldn't count on anyone, that's all I wanna say, and I was only referring to MY experiences in life there. I thought I could count on the Freedom Fighters to like and accept me for who I was, because even after all the times I'd stolen stuff to survive, they took me into their group anyways. But when they were confronted with my past, they just got awkward about it at best. They couldn't handle that it was ' affecting the now. ' So that's why I told him he couldn't count on anyone. Of course I knew that HE could count on people. He isn't ME. I'm not THAT delusional. "

She said sadly, " But when I met the ' evil ' version of Tails later on, I realized that I didn't want Tails to learn that lesson, because HE did, and he was the most paranoid, unhappy kid I'd ever met. I'm glad Tails wasn't like that. I said evil sarcastically though because it turned out he didn't even LIKE his life and he ended up joining the people I left! I got the impression he was too insecure about himself to really feel good about being a jerk. I got off topic here, didn't I? The point is, I'm not happy with the way I left them, but I think if I told them I wasn't the monster they think I am, and they believed me, it'd just be harder on them that I'm gone and never coming back. They have no reason to miss me right now and maybe it's better that way… Maybe if I ever think I'm gonna die tomorrow, I'll go talk to them. Even then, I'm not sure. I think my old friends are better off just being glad I'm gone. I'd say I _owe_ that to them, at least… if we were ever close to begin with. Apologizing to them might not be worth it if it'd just cause them more grief. That'd be the opposite of making up for earlier. " She couldn't believe she finally said all of that.

Fiona started drying her eyes, embarrassed since it was happening right in front of her, and while not being sure what to say, Queen Sally reassured her by stroking her shoulder again, and said, " It's okay, Fi. I'm glad to hear all that. " Fiona revealed, " Another reason I chose Scourge was that he was way more dedicated to making sure I had fun. All Sonic ever did was walk around holding my hand. We never went on a real date, and he literally said that we were still young and there was no rush, but Scourge took me to every fun place he could think of; a rollercoaster, a carnival, a circus, a café with computers. He even made some people agree to let me play baseball for them and I was so happy he did that! He was so much fun to spend time with that honestly, I FORGOT that I already had a boyfriend. It was only at the tail end of all that, that I started giving him a chance and kissing him for the first time. Sonic never really tried with me. Eventually I realized what that meant; he was just using me to get over Sally. He never really wanted me to begin with, so I knew that leaving him wouldn't break his heart. All it did was annoy him. "

Queen Sally reassured her, " It's hard to blame you if he wasn't even trying. You can date Scourge with us as much as you want. It's just that I'd rather you not miss out on a mission, and I doubt you want to miss out on them either. And if they're solo missions, we'll need your help. But you'll still have some time for yourself. Maybe I can work out a schedule where you'll have some days-off. "

She continued, " Again, I'm not like your Sally. She'd probably be keeping a watchful eye on the both of you and be waiting for an excuse to prove her suspicion was RIGHT. But I'm PRETTY sure I can trust Scourge to destroy stuff for us, and that makes him a great Freedom Fighter to me! Sure, he might not be pure good, but it's the actions that really count. He'd have to be a complete idiot to do something like try to kill us or injure us because then he wouldn't get to go on missions for us anymore, at least not without being yelled at and that'd be no fun. Same goes for you. "

" And if he was really a complete monster, you wouldn't have ever trusted him enough to date him. You wouldn't have even started hanging out with him! You do have trust issues, after all. He has to have some kind of soft side if someone who has a hard time trusting people gave him a chance! So basically what I need to do for you is, put you on solo missions, write down your every accomplishment in a notebook for you and make sure you're invited to any fun get-togethers we'll have, and you can be with Scourge all you want. "


	11. Chapter 9-7 worldbuilding

After Fiona and Queen Sally were finished talking about how to best keep Fiona around as a Freedom Fighter, they went out of the kitchen and the queen told Fiona to, " Follow me, " to Rotor's lab, where everyone in the team happened to be, handing Rotor the various materials and tools he needed to make inventions, although Scourge was simply standing against the wall watching them. Scourge, who was holding his teleporter Warp Ring creator in his hand, said, " Getting those sub-bosses deroboticized is gonna be really easy with THIS thing! "

Queen Sally answered, " Not really. " Scourge looked confused and said, " What d'ya mean? I'll just warp to another dimension, make a portal inside of the sub-boss' house and warp there! Then I can force him through a portal to the other world and then force him into the portal back HERE. We should be able to get all of them taken care of in an hour. "

Queen Sally explained, " I wish it was that simple. For one, every sub-boss has an anti-teleportation enchantment around their underground base. After all, Chaos Emeralds have been known for letting powerful mages use Chaos Control throughout history, and they can also power machines to achieve the same thing. So every sub-boss, as well as Robotnik of course, made sure to take advantage of the powers of the castle's former royal wizard, Merlin, to keep any Freedom Fighters from simply teleporting to their bases. Of course, Robotnik had to roboticize him to make him compliant in the first place, and he needed a Chaos Emerald himself to use Chaos Control to make the enchantments. "

Scourge complained, " Well, that's disappointing, but I guess it does make sense. If there was such an easy obvious solution – besides just killing the bad guys I mean – you guys would've already done it. But, why not just warp to right in front of the enchantment field? Nothing's stopping us from doing THAT. "

Rotor said, " Aside from the Robian guards around their bases and DNA-detecting security system. The minute any organic being would try to go into a base, all those doors would start automatically closing. Sure, Uncle Chuck can get around that because he's a robot with free will after I reprogrammed him, but he'd have to hope to lure the sub-boss to him outside of the enchantment field, AND make sure he's alone so he doesn't blow his cover as a spy to any witnesses when he warps him back here, and you can't exactly tell a sub-boss what to do. What's he supposed to do, tell him there's a stain on the floor? It's not a sub-boss' job to clean that up, and usually there's cleaning machines going around 24/7 anyways. "

Queen Sally explained, " Our best bet would be, we'd need Bunnie with her super strength to lift up a sub-boss and carry them into the portal, but he'd just struggle and fight back, and if she defends herself, the only way she could hope to do anything to damage him, like with her laser-shooter or super strength attacks, would also cause too MUCH damage and we're trying to save them, not destroy them. Sub-bosses never leave the safety of their bases because they know Freedom Fighters would take advantage of that. We can't exactly lure them out of their bases with free food. They're not THAT stupid. If there's anything they want outside of their base, they just send Robians to get it FOR them. "

Fiona asked, " Why don't they extend the anti-teleportation field further than their base? Like to their entire city? " Rotor explained, " They can only extend so far. It'd require too much power to enchant an entire city at once and they were lucky they could even get THAT done. Besides, having too much chaos energy in one place for the sake of having a spell on an entire city is begging for trouble; the landscape wouldn't have stayed the same like that for long. We've already got weird places on Mobius from too much magic, like an entire field of giant musical instruments. The ground itself forms into loops with too much in one place, so imagine what that would do to a city full of Robians! That didn't mean they couldn't try to enchant specific areas that needed protection, though, like their generators. We had to stop Merlin before they could try to make enchantment fields in more places than their bases and try to cover their the most important parts of their cities with them. Sonic had to pull a risky move attacking Merlin from a long-distance to force him to drop that Chaos Emerald and stop enchanting. He had to use a taser device to shock him with a very specific controlled voltage to knock him out from behind, and we were lucky he ended up surviving. I had to do some repairs before we could deroboticize him because of the damage, or he might not even be able to move, and I had to reprogram him to stay asleep at a certain time of night while I worked on him just to make sure he wouldn't wake up and attack. "

Bunnie complained, " That's the problem with deroboticizing Robians. They don't exactly let you take them with you. They fight back, and we have to be careful about how we defend themselves because we're not trying to kill them. Rotor can fix the damage to them, but we can't damage them TOO much. " Scourge asked, " But why can't we just put power back into them and turn them back on? They're machines, aren't they? Why don't you just plug something into their battery and recharge them? "

Rotor explained, " They get their power from eating food like corn and turning it into gasoline with their stomach, and it sends that to the pump " heart, " which creates electricity for their wires and sends it to every part of them. So really, I just need the stomach working. The problem is, how do you force that process to happen to a Robian that's not functioning? If parts of them are opened to force stuff to happen in them with machines from the outside, they'd just leak out oil from them. I have to use a machine connected to a Robian's mouth to do it, having a tube connected to them to force energy back into them, and that turns them back on. Okay, it's not like it's impossible, but it's a lot more work for me and it's unsettling having to do all that for a robot that's technically a person. I can repair robots from a lot, but we'd rather not deal too much damage to people we're trying to save. I don't like having to fix their computer brain of damage because Sonic hit them in the head too hard. If a memory's gone, I can't exactly bring it back without knowing the memory myself. Usually we just focus on knocking them out and getting them to the deroboticizer. "

Queen Sally reassured Scourge, " Don't worry, we'll make sure you focus on destroying stuff like robot factories. I know you're not used to holding back. That's our job. " Rotor explained, " So sub-bosses, even if we could get to them, won't exactly let us take them to the deroboticizer, and THEY don't hold back. The Robians care more about getting rid of Freedom Fighters outright, they don't really NEED even MORE Robians. And the metal making up a sub-boss' skin is really tough. Sonic's spindash didn't make a dent in that kind of metal! That's why we needed to resort to shocking Tails' uncle to rescue him. It requires repairs, of course, but Rotor can handle it. "

Fiona said, " I use an electricity-shooter all the time against Robotniks! We could use that against sub-bosses no problem. But of course we'd be lucky to even come face to face with one. " Scourge asked them, " Why can't Rotor just make bombs to blow up the walls of their base? You could make sure there's no Robians nearby, and just keep damaging the walls until you can get up to him! "

Rotor explained, " Their bases are made of REALLY hard stuff. Like carbon nanotube hard. If we could just throw bombs and missiles at them, we would've done so by now. I think we'd have to try really hard to damage the bases, and at that point, the resulting explosion would definitely spread to innocent Robians and collateral damage would be unavoidable. Obviously nukes are out of the question. Not only would that damage the buildings and thus the Robians, but we don't wanna poison the city and ruin it for organics like us. We don't want buildings collapsing on Robians, and sure, they can be repaired, but if the wrong parts of their computer brains are damaged, it's gonna be impossible to restore their mind to exactly the way it was before. We could still repair and deroboticize them, but I want a job done WELL if it's gonna be done at all. "

Antoine said, " Not to mention we can't risk ANYONE getting a hold of your teleport device! It could be a sub-boss or a regular Robian who would bring it TO them. They don't care about holding back in a fight, they'll attack people and interrupt them when they're talking. We only really have one shot, to defeat them on the first attack when their guard is down. That's why we use tasers and hit their legs and arms. But again, the sub-bosses are always in their base and it's so high-security that it's impossible to get in. So we're just focusing on deroboticizing the Robians we CAN get to. It's going to be safer to just leave your teleporter in the castle after you create the portal. You don't wanna risk anyone taking it from you if they get lucky and surprise you with an attack. I-I'm not trying to insult you, I'm just saying it could happen eventually. E-Everyone trips at some point! If you always have it with you, it's bound to get stolen or damaged eventually! "

Scourge was annoyed, but reluctantly said, " Alright, you made your point! I don't want anything happening to this thing either, and with my super speed, it's not like I need it to get back here quickly. I criss-crossed a planet in a race at one point! I can run across the ocean no problem. I just don't see how you expect to win any time soon since any Robians you deroboticize could be replaced with other Robians, so they'll almost always have human shields to keep you from using bombs and missiles in some places! We might have to wait until there's almost no Robians left! Although the sooner you get everything done, the faster I run out of stuff to do here and can't destroy factories for you anymore, so I won't let this get me too down. It's just that hearing about how tricky deroboticizing them can be is annoying. I wish you could just fire a beam at them and do it that way. "

Queen Sally said, " That's what we need Chaos Emeralds for! Portable deroboticizers! Their Chaos Control is necessary for warping the chemicals for deroboticizers to the target, but unfortunately for us, all of the Chaos Emeralds are hidden in buildings that are just as impossible to bomb and break as the bases. They're in the middle of populated cities, well, ' middle, ' we don't know where EXACTLY they are. So trying too hard to destroy those hiding places would cause more harm than good. And we don't want to do that just to find out the Chaos Emerald was destroyed in the process. What they tend to do with Emeralds is put shards of them in the big deadly robots sent after the Freedom Fighters. "

Scourge looked excited saying, " Oh, that sounds fun! I could trash those for you no problem! " and Sonic and Bunnie smiled. Queen Sally explained, " Well, it's not like their metal is soft enough to easily spindash straight through, or they'd all die in seconds, but if Sonic could beat them, you can. Each Emerald has a specific elemental power that you can tell from their color, so they're needed for that, and we need to drain a certain, large amount of Emerald shards to power the juice for one use of a portable deroboticizer. So it's only a matter of time. They'll never stop trying to get rid of the people who are deroboticizing their civilians and destroying their robot factories. It's just not in their programming, they deal with threats, even in ways that are basically GIVING us Chaos Emeralds, even if just a LITTLE bit at a time. "

Scourge said, " OK, so it's only a matter of time before you deroboticize them all. Just keep beating big robots. " Fiona said in concern, " Your city and Knothole can hold so many people, though. You can't exactly bring those deroboticized people back to where they lived before, they'd just get turned back into robots. And Angel Island's only so big, too. " Scourge asked, " Come to think of it, do they know where you guys live? Why don't they just nuke this whole continent if they wanna get rid of you guys so bad? "

Queen Sally explained, " Well, that's why we destroy their factories. If there's any nukes they're trying to make, let alone bombs and warships, we get rid of them before they could make them. They spend most of their time without them. Also, Knothole has the advantage of being in a separate sub-dimension three hours ahead in time from the rest of Mobius. We can thank Merlin for that, he's the one who made Knothole the perfect hiding place for people if the king were ever dethroned. He simply used Chaos Control on the whole place and teleported it through time to a pocket dimension. Its only entrance and exit is the Great Oak Stump. "

Fiona commented, " Oh, that's pretty brilliant. We're lucky Knothole on my planet lasted as long as it did without that luxury. Robotnik always knew it was in the Great Forest, so they always needed Freedom Fighters to protect the place. I know Robotnik tried to nuke Knothole once, it was the first mission I had where Sonic was back from space, but usually Freedom Fighters destroy that stuff before it can be a problem. "

Queen Sally continued, " Even if they destroyed the Great Forest over here, it'd never be destroyed as far as Knothole's concerned because we're always three hours ahead over there. They could cut the whole forest down and they'd still never see Knothole on Mobius! It'd still suck to have to wear hazmat suits every time we try to navigate it outside of Knothole, though, we don't want a situation where the ONLY good places to live on Mobius until the end of time are in the tiny pocket dimensions. So we still need to protect the world. And Mobotropolis doesn't have the luxury that Knothole does. Yet. We're still having people construct a Great Pine Slide so we can have a proper entrance to it. "

Rotor explained, " We can establish villages in perfectly safe places by simply sending them to pocket dimensions, like we did that for Furville too. But every time we do that, it drains the Chaos Emerald of all its power and we need to go find another one. Good thing there's so many of them! There was also the problem where it's difficult to get supplies to a place that can only be accessed from a winding slide underground, so fortunately we have portal technology thanks to the Chaos Emeralds. Merlin can just Chaos Control supplies to Knothole and whatnot to bypass the slide entirely. And Knuckles insisted that we put Angel Island in a temporal zone as well. What better way to protect the Master Emerald? But just because our hometowns are safe from the sub-bosses doesn't mean the rest of the world is. They're constantly trying to pollute the place with toxic waste and destroy its nature. And all we can do about their smoke-spewing is destroy the buildings that do it, and destroy them again when they rebuild. "

" Why? What do they have to gain from it? I mean, they're putting time and money and resources into getting themselves the polluting stuff just to put it somewhere and forgot about it, and they're living in that world they're pointlessly wrecking. I-I mean, I could understand if they had something to gain from it… " Scourge asked in confusion, getting awkward about the fact that he was sounding like a hero who was opposed to it.

Queen Sally explained, " Biological warfare, basically. If the world's too polluted for organics to survive in, it'll be a place where only robots can survive. So they're trying to get rid of anyone not under their control by making the world a place where only Robians can exist. And Robotnik told us that he planned on roboticizing himself and keeping his free will so this wouldn't backfire on HIM, because HE wasn't a robot. As for why he took so long to do it? I guess he was too scared. Who wouldn't be scared of turning into a robot? So that's where you two come in. Half of our goal is deroboticization, but the other half is getting rid of any factories that are causing pollution to our continent. Rotor has to use a special vacuum device to suck up the pollution and get rid of it. And Bunnie and Sonic make sure to evacuate the Robians in those factories and nearby them first, and then we get those places blown up, courtesy of Rotor and his dynamite packs. Since our continent is free now, thanks to you two, we're focusing on Mercia now where Antoine's father is ruling. "

Fiona asked, " Wait, I just realized, why aren't you trying to focus on saving your father first? You know, your king? " Queen Sally looked awkward, and answered, " Well, I used to really care about that as a kid, but when I got older, I thought it over. The minute the king comes back, I'll have to step down from ruling, and he'll be exercising his authority as much as he can. What if he does something stupid like disband the Freedom Fighters because his own country doesn't need them anymore? Not that I'd follow that order anyways. He already dismantled the military when he was in power, not to mention he hired Robotnik as his warlord and scientist in the first place! "

Scourge exclaimed, " Wait, WHAT?! Dismantling the military?! That's the stupidest thing I ever heard! Why would he ever do that?! No wonder he got overthrown! " Fiona was worried since he just came off as rude and most of the Freedom Fighters were glaring at him in disapproval, although some of them, like Rotor and Sonic, merely looked just as exasperated with the king as he did. Queen Sally explained, " I know it sounds stupid, but when he made that decision, the Overlanders his kingdom was warring with had all gone to space to have their own territory after losing the war. We checked their country and found no signs of them. And the Overlanders were the ONLY people that the Acorn Kingdom ever warred with! The whole continent only had two countries on it that really interacted, and no other country than Overland was even interested in bothering the kingdom. It's always been self-sufficient anyways. So the king thought he was fine getting rid of a military that wasn't doing anything anyways. He was told it was a waste of taxpayer money. Somehow he didn't realize that Robotnik would be a threat later. I mean, Robotnik probably lied to him constantly and he didn't know him very well. "

Scourge said in confusion, " Only one country warred with your kingdom? Ever? On my planet, we had wars all over the world since like ever! I'm surprised other countries didn't go to war with yours with their planes, whether they were near it or NOT. " Queen Sally explained, " Planes were only a recent thing over here. Sure, the echidnas had a lot of technology, and they did used to have this big empire of colonies on the surface world before they rebelled and became independent of their rule. Albion's the most obvious example. They're the only place on Mobius' surface where echidnas still bother to live after Robotnik came around, and only because that place keeps itself hidden and safe with their technology. But the rest of the world only got industrialized in any sense after Robotnik took over, so they just got stuff like planes. "

She said, " Anyways, it's not like I don't care about my father. But, well, maybe the kingdom's better off with me in charge. The people certainly think so, and I only knew the king when I was like four years old. I barely even REMEMBER him anymore. I hate to say it, but he'd be like a stranger to me if I saved him now. I just don't see why we need to focus on saving him first and not last when I'm doing a perfectly good job ruling in his place, and upsetting the power balance in the kingdom wouldn't be fun for me. Rescuing any of the other sub-bosses wouldn't cause any problems in the kingdom. I don't think it would be fair if he rewarded me for saving him by revoking my right to rule just because I'm not an adult yet. I might as well be. "

Fiona and Scourge were shocked and confused at hearing that, since Fiona's Sally was a lot more righteous to a slightly ridiculous extent. It made it all the more obvious to them that she was more about being pragmatic, and none of her friends looked at her in disapproval for it. They simply looked sheepish with nervous smiles, understanding why she had come to that conclusion. While Fiona was interested in learning about their world, Scourge said looking bored from all the information, " Alright, so you guys are about turning people back to normal and getting Chaos Emeralds, and you're also about destroying certain buildings. So basically I'll get to destroy big robots and factories for you whenever I want. Sounds like fun to me! See ya tomorrow! "

Queen Sally told him, " Wait! I can get you a place to stay. You two can stay in the guest room of my castle when you want somewhere to sleep. It'll be the most convenient way to do things, since you'll want to be here every morning anyways. " Scourge replied, " Awesome, I missed living in a castle! " while Fiona simply smiled nervously at how lucky she had gotten, and was thankful that Queen Sally's Freedom Fighters weren't complaining about it. Detective Sonic looked irritated at it, but he knew that complaining because of his distrust for them wouldn't accomplish anything.


	12. Chapter 10

It was the dark of night just outside Rotor's lab, as they could tell from the window, and it made sense, as they were in a slightly different time zone from where they were earlier. The two of them looked around the dark lab with Scourge having a flashlight for such an occasion, and eventually Fiona located the blowtorch and welding mask, and Scourge located the shelf where the Sceptre of Sealing was stored away. He pressed the button to create the portal with his zone-link generator giving Fiona an idea of where and where not to blowtorch, and she put the welding mask on over her face and got to work. She used it to create a blue little flame against the metal wall of the shelf moving it slightly up and down as she worked, supporting the blowtorch above the floor mostly with her knees and right arm trying to use her sensitive left arm as little as possible.

Scourge was sitting just to the left of her, a safe distance away, and after a couple seconds of waiting, he commented about her welding mask, " You look pretty _cool_ with that on, y'know? Never really got to see this ' knows how to use gadgeteer stuff ' side of you before, " with a smile of genuine fondness for her and sad-looking eyes in a wistful expression. She replied, " I never needed to use it in front of ya, " with a shrug, and then upon realizing she might have looked like she was dismissing his sweet compliment, said, " Thanks! " in an appreciative tone. It meant a lot to her that he could be fond of her even when she had a welding mask covering up the face he found so physically attractive.

Unfortunately, she soon sighed in frustration and complained, " It's pointless. It's not doing anything to it! We'll never get the sceptre, he built the damn shelf too well. " Scourge said in stubborn desperation, " Well, there's gotta be some way. We NEED that thing! I mean, not that I'm weak enough to need it, but I saw what that wizard did to you! I want every edge I can get over him to make sure he won't get one over us again. " He then stood up from the metal gray floor, saying, " And that includes this, " and just before the lights in the lab turned on, he ran in a green and black blur over to the person who turned them on and grabbed him from behind, with one arm around his chest holding him still and using the other hand to clasp over his mouth. Fiona turned around in confusion, took off the welding mask and saw Tails.

Surprised, she immediately felt anxious and uncomfortable as the memory of when she broke his heart came back to haunt her, or " _annoy me,_ " as her thoughts put it, and she felt conflicted, because she didn't want to do something Scourge would disapprove of, like apologize to him, which would also be more than a little awkward for her, discouraging her even further. So instead, her first response was a confused, " How'd you know he was there? " from Scourge's standing up and not being surprised by the lights. Scourge simply replied, " Hedgehogs have a better sense of smell, and how could I forget the scent of my own little brother? Even if it's just a twin of him, " and said to Tails in annoyance, " Now tell me the combination to this thing so I can leave. "

He took his hand away from his mouth so he could speak and quickly clasped it around the ends of his tails to keep him from using them against him, but Tails noticed that he was only holding them as tightly as he absolutely had to. His grip couldn't be escaped from with struggling, but it wasn't tight enough to cause any pain. He thought, " _He's going easy on me,_ " noticing the newfound gentleness, and thought, " _And not just in the ' not strangling me, ' sense like when he held me up by the neck. Man that was scary, but it could've been so much worse if he wanted. But this, this is new._ "

" Well?! I don't have all day! None of it, in fact, since it's all dark out, " Scourge said impatiently at the six second awkward silence. Tails commented, " You really don't wanna _hurt_ me. You're being so _careful_ , and even more than _before._ " Scourge looked self-conscious about it, and tried to deflect it with a snark, " Anything else obvious you wanna point out, genius? The code, I need the code! You're clearly NOT using the sceptre for anything, so just give it to someone who'll use it so I can get on with my life. "

" No. I don't trust you with it, " Tails said in annoyance, losing his initial fear of him bit by bit. " No?! Do you realize who you're talkin' to? " Scourge responded in frustration, and felt increasingly more stressed out as it dawned on him that because he didn't want to risk the death of another Tails on his watch, he hated the idea of even raising his hand to him. What could he do to him if he couldn't even stand hurting him anymore? " You're refusing to hurt me. And so is she. I mean, what are you gonna do? If you wanted to rough me up, you would've done so by now, " Tails said carefully, trying to act brave and also avoid offending and provoking anyone with his tone. Deep down, of course, he was terrified, but he had a gut feeling and was sticking by it.

Fiona then whispered to Scourge, " We don't wanna make too much noise or someone will show up and get involved! " Scourge groaned at Tails' lack of helpfulness and complained, " What do we do? " Fiona whispered reluctantly, " Reason with him? Just tell him the truth. " Of course, Tails could hear everything since he was right next to them, but Fiona figured that it was worth a shot.

Scourge sighed, said, " Lemme explain, " let go of him and went up to face him before continuing reluctantly, " We ran into this Ixis guy in another zone, some wizard with ice powers, and you know what he did? You know what he _did_ to make me mad? " There was a brief silence since he didn't like even talking about it, before revealing bitterly,

" He _stabbed_ Fiona! " and pulling up the short sleeve on her shirt as Fiona closed her eyes uncomfortable. Tails gasped in horror as he saw that her left upper arm was wrapped in three white bandages, and even had a cotton white square below them held to the wound. Scourge continued passionately, " He sent an icicle at her from behind! And not only that, but he made some ninja goon of his _whip_ her! " and then pulled up the back of her shirt a little bit, showing him the bandages on her, while clenching his other hand into a fist in sheer indignation at it.

Fiona was still avoiding looking at Tails' reaction, uncomfortable with the fact that even after everything that happened, he was still horrified, upset and full of sympathy for her when she received injuries like that. She couldn't help but have the passing thought that the very fact that he didn't think she deserved it and feel like it was the perfect karma was a testament to what a sweet naïve boy he was. Scourge knew he had Tails right where he wanted him, although it had still been very difficult for him to reveal what he had, since just talking about it forced him to remember it and angered him, taking all the emotions he felt from back then and bringing it all back.

Tails exclaimed at last, " That's terrible! Why'd he do that? " after three full seconds of a shocked silence. He was trying his best to avoid crying in front of him again. As Fiona was still silent not comfortable with talking to him, Scourge had to be the one to explain, " He mistook her for an alternate version of her that took his eye out. Anyways, I'm not gonna let him get away with hurtin' my girl! So just get the sceptre for me and I'll be on my way. "

Tails looked upset and said, " I don't wanna betray them again! " and then regretted the last word of his sentence. Both of them naturally were curious and stunned at this, and Scourge asked with his hand on his chin, " Again? You of all people? Nah, you gotta be kiddin'! What're ya blowin' outta proportion? " Tails said uncomfortably, " I don't wanna talk about it. " " Tails? " Just then, at the worst possible time for him, Scourge recognized a slightly younger-sounding Fiona's voice from outside the lab, and the two of them were completely shocked at what they saw.

Walking into the lab looking confused was a red two-tailed fox Mobian with slightly short reddish brown hair in a loose bun that was partly down like Fiona's old hairstyle, wearing a yellow bow, a short lab coat over a long purple dress with a flower design, some rose-tinted glasses with pink frames with hearts on them, and red boots, but most importantly of all was the look of her face. Aside from the glasses, and the surprising second tail, she looked just like a younger version of Fiona.

Both Fionas gasped at seeing each other for the first time in years, and after a brief silence where both Tails and the other Fiona looked awkward, the younger one said awkwardly, " Oh, um, hi! Fiona! S-Sorry about impersonating you earlier but I didn't exactly have free will at the time. If I did, I would've freed you from that cell. " She pushed her pink sunglasses closer to her face and continued with more of a smile,

" Call me Phoebe! Thanks to my two-tailed sweetheart, I'm free of Robotnik's control! My old rusted body got turned organic, so I have a whole new organic body and I'm free to make my own decisions and help out Tails in any way I can! Isn't that great? " She naively forgot that she was talking to an enemy at the end, and after an uncomfortable second, Fiona actually replied, " Good for you, " causing Scourge and Tails to both say, " Huh? "

Feeling pressured to explain herself while looking casual so she would make it clear it wasn't too big a deal, she continued nervously, " _You're_ doing what _you_ want, and _I'm_ doing what I want. We're both following our hearts, and doing what we feel like. That's how it should be. " It felt very strange, talking to what used to be the robot duplicate of herself, getting clear flashbacks to when Robotnik first introduced her to her in that cell and then locked her away for two years. She wondered if she really did have free will, or if Tails included in his reprogramming of her a " date him " code in a sad attempt to get the closest he could get to having her as a girlfriend, and hoped that this wasn't true, and that what Tails did wouldn't horribly backfire on him, having a robot or former robot who believed her only purpose in life was to date him. As she could tell that Tails was feeling very embarrassed and worried at this turn of events, she was trying her best to handle the situation with tact, grace and subtlety, and silently pleaded with her loud-mouthed boyfriend to not do the exact opposite.

Phoebe's head tilted a little bit in a cute way to express intrigue and then she said, " You sound like how my memory banks record Miles said Scourge is. You both do what you want and what you feel like. Makes sense that you'd wanna hang out together, then. You have the same outlook on life. " Scourge added, " We have a LOT in common actually, " with a friendly casual smile, before remembering what he was there for and hiding his anxiety at the idea of Sonic showing up with a look of impatience, reminding Tails, " _Including_ wanting the sceptre in your lab. "

Phoebe commented with her hand on her chin like a wannabe scientist, " Well, this is a conundrum. I mean, we obviously can't beat them in a fight, sweetie, not from what my databanks record about what I've heard of the green hedgehog. But you shouldn't do something your friends wouldn't want you to do either. " She then felt awkward upon looking at Fiona in the eyes and remembering from what she heard about her that she might not agree with that value of loyalty. Tails, really wishing she wouldn't have said anything from her lack of social skills, explained, " They're gonna use it on an alternate Ixis who injured Fiona. "

Phoebe commented, " Oh, that's good! What's the problem, then? " After a brief silence, Tails said reluctantly, " Stay here. I'll go ask Sally, " and ran away in a yellow blur before Scourge could try to stop him, leaving him standing in the lab with his arm outstretched looking panicked. " _The last thing I want is for Sonic to go after me NOW,_ " he thought.

Phoebe recognized the look of fear and distraught in his expression, and the worried one in Fiona's, and asked, " Aren't you gonna go after him? I heard you break any rule you're given just because. " Scourge deadpanned, " Miles told you a LOT about me, didn't he? " wondering if any of it was about his soft side. If he wasn't so attached to him already, he would've been furious with him for the embarrassment. Phoebe nodded, and then said in confusion and disappointment, " Hey, you didn't answer my question! What's up? " Fiona found it unsettling how similarly she mimicked her speech patterns, without ever having a conversation with her until now. Was she always like that? Aside from saying databanks and memory banks, she spoke like a naive socially inept version of her.

Scourge crossed his arms and said, " Well, I'm gonna be rebellious some _more_ and not tell ya. " He didn't want to admit that he was afraid of what would happen if he ran to the Castle Acorn all of a sudden, when his whole plan had been to lay low for a while until he'd have succeeded in eliminating every Robotnik, and make his big grand return to Sonic epic from the revelation. He especially didn't want to admit he was afraid in front of Fiona, and Phoebe didn't look like she would understand the concept of keeping something a secret.

" So I have to play the guessing game? You looked worried there, so, uh… " Phoebe replied, and then trailed off, wisely realizing from what she knew about him that accusing Scourge the Hedgehog of being afraid to his face would be a stupid idea. She didn't know that he wasn't going to try to hurt her in his fragile situation, especially not in front of his girlfriend who would find it uncomfortable, him attacking someone who looks so much like her.

Before anything else could happen, Tails was sighted running up to the lab in a yellow blur spinning his tails vertically to propel him ahead with the wind, and instantly after that, he showed up in front of the shelf and reluctantly opened it with the combination, saying reluctantly with bitterness in his tone, " She said yes. You're very lucky. " Scourge sighed in relief, and then stammered, " That saves me a lot of trouble, " and Fiona wondered if Sally had felt sorry for her, too. She wished that she could've seen her reaction. She asked, " W-Why, though? " and Tails replied, " She doesn't know if you'll survive fighting an Ixis Naugus without it, and she doesn't want a death on her conscience. " Fiona nodded, as it made sense to her, while Scourge looked stunned and skeptical.

As Tails was unlocking the shelf, he questioned, " What did you say to Phoebe while I was gone? " sounding distrustful. Scourge said putting his arms around Fiona, " She's your age, kiddo, what am I gonna do? Ruffle her hair? " Fiona winced at his hands on her back and reacted, " Ow, " causing Scourge to immediately stop while feeling bad for her and awkwardly say, " Oh right, sorry, " and put his hands on her shoulders instead. Fiona winced a little again saying, " That's okay, just be careful, " willing to put up with the minor pain of his hand being just above her arm injury if it meant affection from him.

She put her arms around him in return as Phoebe was watching the whole thing in curiosity, taking in every sight and sound of how they were just as affectionate with each other as her and Tails, and Scourge kissed her forehead and cheeks, which Fiona relished in, lovestruck, while Tails was simmering in the background. Still, he couldn't help but notice from what he was hearing, just how gentle and loving Scourge was being to her. Maybe Miles was right about him. Maybe he really did love her.

Scourge, as Fiona was still holding herself to him with her arms wrapped around him, said, " Don't worry, Fi, I won't let him get away with this. Attacking ME is one thing, that I'm used to. But hurtin' YOU? That's crossing the line! I mean, you had to get stitches and everything! He's gonna get _special_ treatment, that's for sure! I hate him worse than any of the Robotniks! Maybe death is too good for him. Maybe I'll send him to a dimension of sharks! Like, the worst possible zone I can find. When he's helpless to do anythin' to hurt us! Nobody does that to you and gets away with it. " Then he whispered with his hands on her face, " You mean too much to me to let somethin' happen to you, " and Phoebe could tell from her eyes that her heart swelled at hearing that. Nothing could make her happier.

Tails opened the shelf at last, causing the two to let go of each other, and he handed them the Sceptre of Sealing explaining reluctantly, " Here, it'll take away his powers. J-Just be careful. If he sees you and reacts before you do, the same thing will happen again, or worse, " and looked at Fiona with concern. Fiona recognized that and said to Scourge, " He's right, Scourge, I've seen Ixis and he's very powerful. He's no Robotnik where he's just an old man with no special powers. Just be really quick about using this, hun. " Scourge understood why she was worried and kept that in mind, but tried to hide it acting like he underestimated his enemies as usual, feigning bravado with, " As I always am! " as he held the blue Sceptre in his hand.

Suddenly, there was a loud metal clanking sound like the sound of some loud footsteps, and Scourge asked, " What was that? " out of surprised curiosity. Everyone else in the lab exclaimed, " Giant robot! " as a giant red Egg Pawn landed from the sky with rocket feet right next to the lab, threatening to destroy it along with them. Tails and Phoebe screamed, and Scourge was irritated and reluctant when he immediately realized that if he didn't do something to help, there's a chance that another two-tailed fox could die because he failed to protect him. He was frustrated because he knew he wasn't Miles, his first ever friend, but seeing him still triggered the same emotional responses deep down.

As a result, he put down the sceptre, growled and spindashed-jumped at the chest of the robot, knocking it backwards making it back up a few steps. The fight wasn't over that easily, though, as it had good enough balance to avoid being knocked over on its back by the force and instead put its arms backwards to catch its fall. " Hey! " Sonic's voice shouted startling Scourge into jumping at hearing it, and a blue blur started to join in on the fight against the robot, attacking it in the same exact way.

Then when the robot fired a heat-seeking missile, Fiona decided that now was the best time to show off, and ran out of the lab in a red and black blur with her Speed Boots to serve as a distraction for the missile. If it weren't for her, the missile would've hit Tails, but instead, it ended up spinning around in circles as she ran around in a wide circle, just slow enough that it wouldn't come closer to someone else and hit them and just fast enough to always avoid it. Needless to say, Sonic was shocked at seeing the red and black blur, and questioned as he and Scourge worked together to fight the robot, " Who's that?! " Scourge told him after taking a few seconds to think up a witty way of telling him, " Let's just say I gave my girlfriend a new pair of boots! Took them from Robotnik! The same one that dared to lock me up and try to turn me into his mindless slave. You can guess what I did next! "

Sonic gasped and said, " You murdered him? " as the two spindashed away the left arm of the robot, Fiona continuing to keep the missile busy. There was a brief silence, or as much as there could be in the commotion of a giant robot trying to swipe at them and hit them with eye lasers, and Scourge then replied still smiling triumphantly, " In seconds, slowpoke! I took him down and better than you ever would. And have you seen the place now? They LOVE me for it! They practically worship me! I wish you could've seen the look on the other you's face. I'm finally getting the recognition I deserve! And I don't CARE what you think! I don't need your approval and you're not running my life! So I'm gonna keep doin' this, whether _you_ , _like_ it, or _not!_ "

He went from telling him everything while looking overjoyed to suddenly snapping at him furiously by the end that he didn't care what Sonic thought of him, which surprised Sonic from the sudden outburst. During the final sentence clause, he was angrily attacking the robot with every two words until it finally collapsed backwards to the ground, and Fiona led the missile into it and pushed the both of them out of the way of the resulting explosion with her speed. None of them were harmed, landing on the grass about a mile away, and Scourge breathed a sigh of relief that the lab didn't get damaged, either.

Unfortunately, another giant robot, this time a blue Egg Pawn, burst out of the ground on cue before anyone could question why Fiona saved Sonic as well, but it was close enough to Fiona for her to attack it, using her ray gun and the Lightning Rod to electrocute it. Then Scourge proceeded to occupy himself with tearing it to shreds. Sonic said to her in confusion, " So you have super speed boots now? " Fiona replied with a great big smile the likes of which he could barely remember seeing,

" Yep! All thanks to him! And he said one day he's gonna get me to have that speed as a natural part of me, all so I can always keep up with him. You were right, Sonic! I love him! I'm loyal to him, and I feel silly that I didn't admit it before! He makes me happier than I have ever been! You know why? It's not just because he's brave and nice to me and reliable and all the other positive traits you have, it's because on top of all that, he likes me for who I am! He likes me for ALL of my past, not just awkwardly ignoring some of it. He doesn't want to change me, he thinks I'm perfect how I am. I'm glad I went with him, 'cause it gave us the happiest part of our lives! "

Then she promptly looked uncomfortable, and admitted in the face of Sonic's glaring at her judgmentally with his arms crossed, " A-Although I wish I could've been less harsh about it. " There was a brief silence, until Sonic asked, " You mean, with Tails? " stunned at what she was implying. Fiona avoided looking him in the eyes as she admitted awkwardly, " Obviously, " trying to speak flippantly to cover up the discomfort.

Sonic asked her, " How long have you had that regret, Fi? " starting to wonder if Tails wasn't just being naïve and there really was still good in her all that time. " Since the night after-I just said it offhandedly, I didn't WANT it to be dragged on like such a big deal, okay?! I don't wanna talk about it! " she replied masking her awkwardness and regret with frustration.

Sonic said, " I'd say this should be talked about a little! " frustrated that she had taken this long to express regret. Fiona snapped and explained looking stressed out, " I'm SORRY, okay?! I admit that I shouldn't have hurt Tails, it was totally unnecessary, but I was under a lot of pressure because of Scourge, and the life-changing decision I was taking. I just wanted him to stop convincing me. The point is, " sighed heavily in relief at getting that all out finally, and smiled nervously saying, " aside from THAT, I'm happy. I followed my heart and did what felt right in my life, and I'll continue to do so. I'm being true to myself. It's better than living a lie. " Sonic didn't admit it, but he could understand that way of thinking from her, and if she hadn't been talking about his evil twin, he would've found the whole thing a lot more heartwarming.

With the robot finally defeated, collapsing backwards onto the ground in front of them, Scourge landed on the ground, making as impressive-looking of a landing as he could, and shouted triumphantly being heard by Eggman's hidden flying camera drone, " Is that all?! You better step up your game, Robotnik, 'cause somewhere down the road, that'll be you by my hands! " He had no way of knowing Eggman was actually listening, and simply said that to gloat and look like a badass.

Sonic then got Scourge's attention again, still looking serious and alarmed at his earlier revelation, and questioned stammering in disapproval, " S-So, y-you're gonna keep this up? Like some sort of Robotnik serial killer? " Scourge rolled his eyes with his arms crossed and said, " Do ya need to look up the definition of serial killer in a dictionary? " " Do you?! " Sonic exclaimed. " They're hardly innocent, Sonic. I'm not just doing this out of an arbitrary ' racking up a body count, ' I could do that with anyone, " Scourge deadpanned, his patience being tested by Sonic acting totally irrational in his eyes.

As Fiona stayed silent and crossed her arms looking annoyed to hide how uncomfortable she felt from seeing Sonic again, Sonic asked him angrily, " Like with the other me's? I thought 'cha wanted to be the only one. That's what I'd expect you to do, anyways. " Scourge looked irritated with his fists clenched and one eye twitching at Sonic accusing him of being completely predictable just because he was his evil twin, and for real instead of while mocking him in his thoughts this time, and blurted out, " What, do ya think I don't have my own mind?! I'm not as predictable as you think I am! I do things for my OWN reasons! I'm my own person, evil twin or not! "

As he felt embarrassed with it dawning on him how revealing his words were, he thought, " _You're slippin', Scourge. Play it cool!_ " When Tails ran up to the stunned-looking Sonic in a yellow blur, he hugged his big brother figure exclaiming, " You're alive! " Sonic smiled and joked, " What, you think that explosion would be enough to do me in? Please. "

This brief break gave Scourge some time to regain his composure, start smiling again at the sight of that, and smirk confidently again as if nothing was wrong. Tails asked Scourge after the hug ended, " Hey, how'd you escape from the No Zone anyways? " and Scourge said with a proud smile, " All thanks to my girl here, and Doctor Finitevus. Who I took down too! I already got my full power back thanks to him. I don't need him anymore, the nut! Sure, he said he'd make me have some new powers, but I'd have to be pretty weak to think I needed that! I'm already stronger than you. "

Not wanting to elaborate on the exact events involved in that incident, he changed the subject. " The point is, Sonic, I'm beatin' you at your own game! I'm doin' it better than you ever could! And from now on your Robotnik's on a time limit! " Scourge told him. He then said triumphantly as Sonic and Tails looked shocked at him, " I was just over at Detective Sonic's world, and Queen Sally's having a STATUE of me built! A statue! Right in front of City Hall! And I took down their Robotnik in seconds, Sonic! Seconds! Do ya RESPECT ME NOW?! "

There was an awkward silence that tugged at Fiona's heartstrings as it was clear to her how deep the issue went with him, and while Sonic and Tails still looked apprehensive, there was discomfort and pity in them that they couldn't ignore, especially for Sonic, who asked himself in his thoughts, " _Did I cause this?_ " Scourge regained his composure after glaring at him trembling with his fists clenched, and said quickly with a confident smirk, " He's a weak and pathetic old man and you couldn't beat him in all these years! And _my_ way wins in _seconds!_ SECONDS! With those kinda results, I gotta be doin' somethin' right! So _tell_ me, Blue, what did ya learn? " His arms were crossed at the end.

Sonic stammered, " What did I learn?! You mean besides the fact that you're goin' overboard?! " He would've said, " gone off the deep end, " or something along those lines, but he knew it would've been much too insulting and insensitive at the moment. He said sadly, " I mean, _sure_ you _beat_ 'em, but t- " Scourge interrupted snapping at him up in his face, overwhelmed with once pent-up frustration, " EXACTLY! I beat 'em! I'm getting _results!_ I've already got 28 different planets free of Robotnik with my bare hands! I did that MY way, not yours! And since it's obvious you'll never understand me, _why_ should I care what you think? I already proved I'm the best Sonic of all, it's pointless to get your confirmation, because you'll never admit the truth anyways. The point that you'll never understand is, I'm NOT YOU! I'm proud of what I'm doin' and I'm gonna keep at it 'till there's none of them left! " He then admitted quietly, " Well, except the ' good ones ', those don't count. " They noticed that he had sounded sad at the first few sentences, even desperate to get his point across. " _Did I… break him?_ " Sonic worried in his thoughts, hoping he was just exaggerating.

Sonic was stunned and didn't know what to say. He wasn't sure if anything he said could convince him otherwise, and what's worst is that he was actively holding back tears blinking irregularly from realizing how much his rivalry with Scourge had affected him emotionally. He never realized just how hard it could be on someone to realize they weren't the only one of them out there, that they weren't really special, and didn't really matter. Finally, he said quietly, " It's understandable, I _know_ they're evil and should be stopped. It's just cruel, that's all. I'd feel terrible if I did that myself. It's just not, me… " feeling bad for him to the point of trying to be careful to not sound judgmental and set him off again.

Scourge was clenching his fists and gritting his teeth as his eyes were closed as hard as he could until he heard Sonic's awkward response. The last sentence he uttered sparked a little bit of hope in him that he finally understood, and accepted him, not only for him, but accepted him as a unique person from him. It was frustrating to him that he cared about getting that from him at all, just because he was the Prime Sonic and the first other Sonic he had met.

Tails asked timidly, " So where does Fiona come in in that plan? You're talking as if _you_ do all the, uh, ' taking down. ' " Scourge then replied nonchalantly, " She just uses a long-distance taser on them so they can't try to hurt us. That's really all, " with a dismissive wand of his hand, reassuring Tails. That took most of the weight off for Fiona, who was feeling a little judgment coming her way for being involved in his plan.

There was a brief uncomfortable silence until Fiona said nervously with her hand on Scourge's shoulder, " Sweetie, we should get a move on. No point in standin' around. " " Let's, " Scourge replied, wishing he could put his arm around her as usual but couldn't because her back was still really sore. He put his finger up to say to her, " Hold on, " ran to the lab and back in a blur getting the Sceptre in a second, and pulled the zone-link portal generator out of a pocket in his leather jacket.

After he made the portal, Sonic awkwardly approached him saying gently, " Hey, uh, " and put his hand on his shoulder, which made him jump at it gasping startled and turn to face him looking apprehensive, shaking with shrunken pupils and his fur briefly standing on end. This caused Sonic, who had stepped backwards in response taking his hand away, to wonder if being in prison while depowered made him easily threatened. He thought, " _What did they do to you, Scourge?_ " and found himself actually wishing he would be more like the way he used to be.

Wanting to get it out quick, Sonic admitted quickly and awkwardly with downcast eyes at the first sentence, " I'm sorry. It's not my fault there's so many of us. I only taunted you about who was better and stuff 'cause you're not a _hero_ like me, and I think you can do better. I always wanted you to. I didn't mean to, uh, affect you by it. Like stress ya out. " As Scourge stared at him apprehensively with a suspicious expression but hope and sadness in his eyes, feeling like he was having a good dream that would end or turn sour any minute to his crushing disappointment and frustration, Sonic hoped he wouldn't get really offended at his last sentence and the implications of it all. It was obviously a touchy subject for him, the inferiority complex, and even Tails could tell.

Finally, Scourge replied nervously with a serious expression, " Th-Thanks, Sonic. It, uh, it means a _lot_ … I-I hope ya mean it, or you'll pay! " and ran into the portal instantly; it was clear that it would take a while for the sincerity of Sonic's apology and explanation to sink in, and his issue with him wouldn't immediately go away. Fiona briefly looked at Tails awkwardly, mouthed a quick, " Sorry, " and jumped in after him, and the portal closed, leaving a depressing silence filling them with emptiness at them being gone.

Sonic asked Tails feeling sorry for him, " Were you hoping she'd stay? " and after a brief silence, Tails admitted, " A little. But I don't need her, I've gotten over her, " and when Phoebe ran up to him finally catching up with him from the lab, he held her hands staring into her eyes lovestruck, and said to Fiona's formerly robotic duplicate, " It was you I fell for in the first place. You're the one I always wanted. "

Sonic then said, " Yeah, she can ' follow her heart, ' if she wants to. We never needed her anyways. At least they're freeing worlds now and not taking them over. Still doin' cruel things, but good ol' Green is closer to being a hero than he's ever been, " talking with a chuckle joking around at the end. Tails replied, " Just a _really_ unscrupulous anti-hero. I'm not even sure if he knows it, he probably still thinks he's just a villain… Wait, ' follow her heart? ' Did she talk to you when I wasn't there? "

Sonic then sighed heavily, and summarized to him what Fiona had said; that she and Scourge were in love, and yet in spite of that, she still admitted that she felt terrible about slapping Tails. Just hearing what Sonic had to say made tears well up in his eyes, and he gave Phoebe a hug as he started to cry, wishing that it was Fiona holding him in her arms and telling him she was sorry. If Scourge hadn't been there, if she had only been alone with him, she might have done exactly that.

Tails then sneezed turned away after the hug ended, and Phoebe looked panicked and asked, " What was that?! " He was confused for a moment before explaining with a nervous smile, " It's just a cold, don't worry. It's just for a few days. I'll try to be careful where I sneeze so I won't get you sick. " Looking worried, Phoebe said, " Sick? " Tails explained to her, " It's just a little virus going around in the air. " The word " virus " explained everything to her, and she said nervously, " I don't wanna get sick! Who knows what could happen?! "

Tails reassured her, " It's okay, Fi, most of the time when you get sick, it's just the cold, which is practically harmless. It's all a part of being organic. That's just the price you have to pay for being waterproof, and having such soft skin, " gently touching her face at the final sentence making her smile a little, and finished, " and being able to eat and drink. " Phoebe smiled some more, and admitted, " It's worth it. "

Meanwhile, Scourge remained serious and oddly quiet after he went into the portal to their hotel room with Fiona, and she asked nervously, " Could I get some early rest? I'll be waiting for you when you're done getting revenge, " pointing to the Sceptre of Sealing he was holding. He said distractedly, " Oh, right, of course, " and then said unhappily seeming melancholic, " I've got a lot on my mind right now, anyways. Rather be alone to clear my head. " He added nervously, " Just for a _few_ _hours,_ though, I'll be back, " reassuring her that he wasn't planning to leave her forever. She nodded in understanding and he took off running out of the room, out of the hotel, and all over the planet past streets and fields looking for Ixis, unable to stop thinking about his talk with Sonic as his mind was racing full of questions.

He had started his plan to get Sonic jealous of him, in the hopes that he would finally know how it feels to feel like the inferior Sonic, but Sonic felt sorry for him instead, and apologized for the impact he had on his life, after being horrified focusing only on the harsh methods he used to take down Robotniks. In Scourge's eyes, he had completely missed the point. He wondered if he might have gotten the results he wanted if he could've somehow sealed the Robotniks away instead, but immediately realized how unsatisfying that would feel to him. Keeping them alive would feel very inconclusive, as if they were getting away with it. He then promptly denied the idea that he really cared that much about making them pay for their evil deeds, since they didn't affect him at all, although he still found roboticization creepy enough to warrant a humiliating punishment for all of them.

As he thought over and over again about Sonic's lack of an insecure identity crisis, he eventually remembered how the detective Sonic had reacted earlier. While he didn't get the reaction he wanted from the Prime Sonic, he DID manage to make the other Sonics jealous and insecure, and although he found them all to be insignificant compared to the Prime Sonic, he still enjoyed the idea of getting all of the other Sonics out there to know how he felt after he one-upped them and beat them at their own game. If he couldn't prove himself to Sonic, he could at least prove himself better than all the other Sonics; that at least was something he had no doubt in his mind about being true. It still wasn't as satisfying as getting what he ultimately wanted, though; getting the Prime Sonic to genuinely respect him, instead of facing his constant disapproval. It was frustrating to him that he was bothered by it at all, he wanted to absolutely relish in it rebelling against him like the rebel he was, instead of finding the judgment and treatment as a monster annoying.

He asked himself what he even wanted. He still found it really exciting the idea of him being the one to get rid of all of the evil Robotniks, really making a place for himself in history that would make him historically the most important Sonic of all. That would be more than enough to make him number one. But he still felt a little empty. He didn't exactly want Sonic to be all buddy-buddy with him, he'd be uncomfortable with having a friend who didn't accept him for who he was and was constantly lecturing him like Sally, and just wanted to change him. But he couldn't help but remember when he offered to rule the universe with Sonic. If he really hated his guts that much, and wanted to be the only one left with all his heart, then he wouldn't have even considered making that offer.

He sighed, wondering if he would ever truly know what he was lacking and what he ultimately wanted as a goal, because ruling the world hadn't been entertaining. What he did know was that he had plenty of things to appreciate already; Fiona, his exciting mission, he had some groups of friends in two different dimensions who appreciated him for what he did to Robotnik, and most importantly, he wasn't in prison.


	13. Chapter 11

To Scourge's disappointment, while he was able to use the Scepter of Sealing on the Ixis who injured Fiona, depowering him for the beatdown of a lifetime, he couldn't find the Emeralds that he heard Ixis had stolen. This was disappointing to him not because he thought he needed them personally, since he was confident in his own power already, but because he was hoping to use them to heal his girlfriend faster. The weeks where Fiona's back and left arm were healing were painful for both Fiona and Scourge, since Fiona was obviously in literal pain, while Scourge hated how he couldn't " make out with " her in the same way he normally did, as he had to take care not to touch her sensitive bandaged injuries in the process.

He had to switch to having his arms around the back of her neck as it became Fiona who put her arms around him instead, as he tried to be gentle with her. Her left arm hurt to move from the cut, but fortunately it was her right arm that shot with the electrocuting ray gun anyways, so she kept on participating in Scourge's missions to take out every Robotnik he could. She simply had to be careful the rest of the day.

Eventually, after the two worked together to get rid of Professor Egg from Stealth the Hedgehog's dimension, they both gasped at hearing some roaring laughter just outside his base, and were greeted by an alternate version of Kragok. " I see you've eliminated my worst enemy! Even with the power of the Chaos Emeralds at my disposal, I was still having trouble. Thank you so much for giving the world to its rightful owner! " Just hearing the final sentence caused Fiona to use the ray gun on him and make him collapse to the ground writhing being tasered, and Scourge grabbed him by the collar intimidatingly, and said with a smirk,

" Nice try, doofus. You wouldn't happen to know where your Emeralds ARE, would ya? I have a plan for 'em. And if you let me borrow a few, I might spare ya. " Then he winked to Fiona as Kragok agreed, reassuring her that he wasn't actually going to let the next threat to the world live. He thought to himself, " _Not like I care. I don't care what happens to this random planet. I just don't like this guy,_ " and believed that it would be all the more fun humiliating him with a harsh defeat if he was surprised from being double-crossed by him.

As Fiona kept Kragok helpless with the taser-ray gun, Scourge picked him up and was told by the frantic and resentful villain where he would have to go for the deal. The rogue couple then proceeded to run alongside each other at the speed of sound in differently-colored blurs until Kragok finally said, " Stop! It's right here! " at a dark-colored metal building. There, Kragok put in a password opening a safe, and gave them the Emeralds, saying in frustration and fear, " There, I gave you the Chaos Emeralds you wanted! Now- " Fiona then promptly electrocuted him again with her long-distance taser, while Scourge smirked in approval at not even having to tell her to do it.

Scourge said seriously, " First thing's first, " wanting to prove he cared more about alleviating Fiona's pain and getting rid of her injury than killing Kragok, and after he took off her bandages exposing her wounds, he held all of the Emeralds up to her back with his eyes closed, saying in deep concentration, " Heal! _Heal!_ " He then exclaimed, " Yes! " as the wounds closed up by themselves being surrounded with multi-colored light, and then he aimed the emeralds lower facing her legs, and said with a smile, " Wanna run as fast as me while wearing any shoes ya want? Here ya go! " Fiona had a great big smile, her legs feeling great as they were surrounded by light, and when it stopped at last, she took off her Speed Boots and proceeded to, after some nervous hesitation, run around in a circle at the speed of sound.

" Yes! Thank you! " she exclaimed, and promptly gave him a hug, all excited as Scourge grinned. They quickly realized she wasn't shocking Kragok anymore, let go of each other, and Scourge smirked and engaged him in an almost one-sided fight. Punches and kicks were thrown left and right, but Kragok only took half a minute to be defeated by the sheer force at which he attacked, and collapsed to the floor defeated, as the two rogues cheered at their overwhelming victory.

That day, Fiona and Scourge met with the Film Noir dimension Freedom Fighters, and Queen Sally explained to them at the dinner table, " I'm glad you're here. Robotnik's sub-bosses are still running most of the planet. There's still plenty of madmen using robots to threaten the world. We're even suspecting Crocbot of making some explosives in Downunda, so we'll need all the help we can get. That's why we'd really appreciate having your help, especially yours, Scourge. I'll even, uh, turn a blind eye to the law-breaking as long as it doesn't cause big problems for us. It's the smart thing to do. What do you say? "

Scourge then said, " No big deal, I'll just warp to them and break their necks, it'll take just a few minutes. " Queen Sally said looking nervous while the other Freedom Fighters at the table shared in her sentiment, " They're robots, actually, " and Scourge replied, " Even better, I can spindash 'em, and Bounce Attack 'em. There'll be no holding back! "

Antoine-FN suddenly exclaimed, " Wait, you don't understand! My father's one of them! " Scourge said in confusion, " Huh? " and Queen Sally explained, " Not all of them are just robots! Crocbot is, but most of them are innocent people who were turned into robot slaves! He did that on purpose so we'd hold back against them. We can't just destroy them. " Scourge rolled his eyes in disappointment, and she continued, " It's not their fault they were thrown into cells and roboticized! " His pupils shrunk and his eyes opened wide at hearing that, as she continued, " Can we trust you on this? "

Hearing that reminded Scourge of when that very thing almost happened to him, which wasn't a pleasant memory, and he replied trying to hide the nervousness from earlier, " Well, that makes it more interesting. So I'll get to keep destroying robots and other machines until we capture those guys? Sounds good to me. Though I could do that in any dimension. " He ruffled the hair of the two-tailed fox kid with a blue jacket on beside him as the kid giggled, and he said, " But I'll choose this one for you. Why not, I'll be visiting anyway. It'd be a waste not to have some fun while I'm here! " Queen Sally sighed in relief and said, " Thank you! Glad to hear it, " having been worried that Scourge would destroy some innocent Robians for the same reason he did Robotnik.

She continued, " I'll let you know any time we want to include you and Scourge in a mission for some extra manpower. With Scourge's super speed and spindash, as well as physical strength, it goes without saying he'll be a tremendous help! Right? "

Scourge looked worried while she was explaining it as if Fiona was just another one of her Freedom Fighters, having some internal conflict as he wondered if being in it for purely selfish reasons was truly enough to make him not a hero, defeating the purpose when he mostly dedicated his life to _rebelling_ against Sonic, not doing what he wanted. But upon his ego being appealed to, Scourge quickly agreed with his arms crossed and a smirk, " With someone as awesome as me, anything's possible! And I'll do it way better than Sonic ever could, " causing Sonic-FN to say looking irritated, " I'll be coming on the missions too. You aren't replacing me any time soon. " " Good! I'm my own person, and I'd like to keep it that way, " Scourge replied, being reminded of when he impersonated Sonic, and feeling awkward at the end that he had enjoyed it so much back then.

One of the regular missions with Frost's Freedom Fighters led to Fiona and Scourge being up all night chasing a few UFO superweapons of an upstart Coconuts wannabe-replacement for Robotnik. At one point, where Scourge was told to be with Antoine-FN to serve as his bodyguard, Scourge dealt the final blow to the UFO in front of him, as it was shooting out an orange laser at the same time. It narrowly missed him, but after he landed on the ground, he turned around and noticed that lasers were still being shot in the direction of the one he was told to protect, even as the UFO was breaking down. Antoine-FN screamed at an explosion-causing laser hitting a small rabbit just in front of him, reducing it to ashes, and before the final laser could actually hit him and give him the same fate as the alternate Tails he had failed to protect, Scourge pushed him out of the way in a green and black blur shouting, " No! "

With the two on the ground afterwards, Scourge, feeling self-conscious and embarrassed, tried to excuse his instinctive act of heroism with, " S-See how fast I am?! Besides... Frost wouldn't want ya getting hurt and I don't wanna deal with all that whining. "

Getting up from the ground aching from Scourge's impact with him, Antoine-FN said with a shaky voice looking terrified and trembling, " Merci! J, I-I almost got vaporized by that! Oh, mon dieu… " Scourge stood up from the dirt-covered ground asking with a cocked eyebrow, " Is this your first time or what? You've gotta have had PLENTY of close calls before! You didn't get hit by it, so there's nothin' to be upset about, " and joked, " Stop being such a wuss, they'll kick ya out at this rate, dude, "

Antoine-FN gasped and looked horrified at the prospect, and his eyes started to water as he stood up and said with forced anger to save face, " No they won't! You don't understand them at all! They wouldn't, they, I'm not that pathetic! You and Sonic both, you _always_ bull… " When the tears escaped his eyes and he started sniffling drying his face as fast as he could, Scourge went from being really frustrated with him for looking so unusually pathetic to feeling sorry for him as he finished his sentence, " Bully you? " He was immediately reminded of the various times Miles broke down crying from just talking about the ways he'd been unfairly bullied in the past, as well as the time Sonic called him a bully, the one insult he gave him that really stuck with him. He wanted to prove him wrong about a lot of insults, and that one just added to the pile.

Still trying to save face by acting angry and resentful, the Antoine with a blue and green military jacket said with a choked up voice, " You know, for all sorts of excuses. I'm not like the rest of them. I don't have any special powers like the super speed or the ice magic, there's my constant struggles with the English, my sword doesn't even cut the robots that I try to fight. And they still keep me around… " and whispered, " as a burden to protect. "

That was enough for Scourge, and he blurted out, " I'm sorry, " being sent to the breaking point after trying to resist any sort of annoying pity for him for so long. Antoine-FN looked up at him in surprise and confusion, his eyes still watering, and he figured since he already blurted that out, he might as well keep going since he already didn't look like a bad boy anyways. He wouldn't have another chance to say what he was about to without it being even more awkward from poor timing.

" Stop crying. I was just joking around, trying to have a little fun with you. If they were really the type to ditch you, they would've done that by now. Obviously they gotta be really attached to ya then, if they've stuck by you for so long. It's not your fault you got no special powers. Maybe you could give yourself them with some Emeralds, later, or at least make your sword able to actually cut through robots finally, " Scourge comforted him sadly. He put his arm around him instinctively to reassure him and continued, " I-It'll be fine, you had every reason to be shaken after this. Just, chill out, you're remindin' me of Miles. It's too depressing trying to tease ya when this happens, "

Antoine-FN found himself smiling a little at that, even if nervously from a criminal like him being so close to him, and after deciding that teasing him about it was too risky and would ruin the heartwarming moment, he settled on saying, " Thank you. You didn't have to do that. N-Not even Sonic ever did. " Scourge sighed despite the slight smile on his face, dreading the mere idea that someone might eventually tease him about going soft. He refused to accept the very idea of it, proudly insisting,

" I'm just as evil as when I got rid of my selfish dad when he was ruling the world, so don't ever say I went soft! " As Antoine-FN looked scared of him again, Scourge continued unhappily, " I just couldn't help it when you were, bumming me out so much. It's not your fault, though. "

Antoine-FN's wrist-communicator went off with a slight vibration, much to Scourge's relief, and Sally-FN told him over it, " The mission's complete. Meet back up with us. " This caused Scourge to lift him into his arms saying, " It'll be faster if I carry you with me, " amused at him shrieking a little from being startled, and Sally-FN giggled at that as she ended the transmission and Scourge ran at the speed of sound with him over the nearest hill.

This led to Fiona and Scourge having breakfast with them at Queen Sally's castle, bacon and a mushroom omelet. After Fiona finished it, however, she felt nauseous and excused herself from the table, and it dawned on her that unlike so many mornings recently, it couldn't have been the fault of the food she was eating, because it was made by the servants of royalty, who revered her and Scourge for taking down an evil dictator.

She had been worrying for weeks that the breakfasts they were having at the hotels they were staying at were being poisoned, because of the menacing way she and Scourge looked. But with her even being sick from a high-class breakfast, she started to get worried. It had happened to her every morning for the past three weeks, and she had kept it a secret from Scourge, because if he found out and she was forced to tell him her suspicion of why it was happening, he'd just go ballistic on the hotel cooking staff. So she had kept it all a secret from him, and was incredibly thankful that she had been doing so successfully. Unfortunately for her, there was another, more personal secret that she was also keeping, and she was hoping it would turn out to be not the big deal she was making it out to be.

Eventually, she jumped at hearing a knock on the door in the bathroom, panicking at Scourge potentially finding out and asking her what happened. " Fiona? Ya okay, girl? " Fortunately for her, to her immense relief, it was the Film Noir version of Bunnie instead. Her cyborg arm was the other arm instead, and her eye shadow make-up was green instead of purple. Fiona planned on advising her to make it purple as a fashion tip. Hoping that she had gotten most of it out of her system despite still feeling a little weak, she flushed the toilet she was hunched over, unsteadily forced herself to stand with the bathroom sink from above, successfully cleaned her muzzle with sink water and folded toilet paper feeling disgusted and awkward hoping that no one would notice, and she opened the door, smiling nervously saying, " I'm fine! "

Bunnie-FN, who was wearing a purple and gray top with a cowgirl's outfit and a necklace with a pearl on it, made a gesture backing away as if she had smelled something awful and said, " Whoa! What's with the breath? No offense, Fi, but, with that combined with all the noise I heard in here… "

To make matters worse, Queen Sally walked over to her from around the hallway corner, having overheard her. Fiona quickly left the bathroom asking, " Do ya have a breath mint, at least? I don't have a toothbrush here, haven't in days actually- " lying at the end hoping that it would explain things to Bunnie well enough. Unfortunately, Bunnie pointed out grabbing her arm with her organic arm, " Nice try, but that still doesn't explain what I heard in here! "

Fiona sighed heavily as she was forced to go back into the bathroom, and try to reassure the two very concerned-looking girls who reminded her so much of her old teammates. Queen Sally said to her, " I can't imagine why you'd feel nauseous from that. The chef really outdid himself this time! He wanted to make things extra special for the saviors of Mobius. So for you to have that kind of reaction is implying something. "

Fiona said nervously scratching the back of her neck at first, " It's not a big deal. Nothing that'll keep me from going on those exciting little adventures with you guys. " Bunnie told her looking serious, " Not bein' able to hold down a breakfast fit for a king IS a big deal! What's going on? " Fiona, feeling like she was a criminal being interrogated and trying to do whatever she could to get away with it, and not wanting them to think she had an eating disorder either, was incredibly nervous and uncomfortable at the prospect of getting caught as she lied, " I'm allergic to bacon. "

Queen Sally asked, " You mean pork in general, right? Just bacon would make little sense, " as Bunnie had her hands on her hips. Fiona said looking nervous, " Well yeah, obviously. I just said bacon 'cause it was what was on the dish. " Bunnie questioned with reassuring concern in her expression rather than suspicion like her previous interrogators, " But if you were allergic, why didn't'cha say somethin'? " Fiona lied, " I didn't wanna embarrass myself, I'm kinda self-conscious about the whole thing. And besides, it still tasted pretty good, I couldn't help myself. "

Sally replied, " Alright then. The breath mints are in the kitchen, third cupboard to your left. " Feeling increasingly less worried as they seemed to believe her, she felt like a weight was lifted off her shoulders as she walked out of the bathroom in a proud stride, and then she said with a casual shrug to seal the deal, " It's no big deal, this kinda thing happens a ton! "

" A ton? " Queen Sally responded, looking at Bunnie worried after that. Just wanting to let the truth out already, Fiona said trying to look casual still, " Feels like every other morning, whether it's bacon or sausage or whatever. It doesn't matter, it's fine. I just didn't tell ya because I didn't wanna worry anyone. Including Scourge. You can't tell him about this, okay? Can I trust you guys? " She felt self-conscious of her clear trust issues slipping out at the final sentence. The two girls nodded looking worried, and she sighed in relief with her hand close to her chest, and said gratefully, " Thanks. " She started eating a breath mint after that.

Bunnie-FN asked, " How do ya manage to hide it from him, though? You spend every night with him in a hotel, and have breakfast there together. He doesn't get suspicious of you at all? " Fiona replied looking worried but feeling more relaxed around her, " No, I ALWAYS go to the bathroom to ' freshen up ' after breakfast, and he's not near the door when I'm in there. He never suspects a thing. And I'd like to keep it that way, keep his mind at ease, for as long as I can until the whole thing all blows over. " With Bunnie walking closer to the bathroom door behind her, she asked, " Wait, blows over? "

Fiona said reassuringly with a dismissive wave of her hand, " Yeah, I mean, I'm sure it's just a little bug I caught in all my dimension-travelling, it's nothing. I've never gotten really sick before, I don't even get colds! And it's just in the mornings, and I feel just fine right after. No way it's serious or else it's the kindest flu ever. " There was a dead silence as the two girls stared at her nervously, awkwardly glancing at each other for the next few seconds as it dawned on her that she might have made a mistake. " What? " she asked, anxiety creeping up in her again. Queen Sally pointed out in confusion, " How can an allergy be just a ' bug? ' "

" Oh… " Fiona said quietly, embarrassed that in her relaxing around them talking as if they were her old friends, she had completely forgotten the lie she was working with. " Come on, I just didn't wanna worry you guys! PLEASE don't tell me you don't trust me anymore just because of one little white lie! " she blurted out just from the slightest hint of a frown from Queen Sally. She realized seconds later from FN Sally's pity that she had misinterpreted her as judgmental from past experience.

With a placating gesture, Queen Sally reassured her, " Relax, it's not about that. We get it. You don't want him to know you're a little sick. At least you let the truth come out, even if you were a little late. " Fiona turned around and started walking out of the bathroom again, muttering quietly, " I'm late for somethin', alright, " as she was worried about the potential illness being more serious than she thought.

" Late? You're late? For what? " The sound of Sally saying that made her blood run cold as she froze in her tracks in front of the door again, and as she turned to face her in alarm from the exasperation with all the secrets slipping out in her tone, she jumped at hearing the bathroom door close and lock behind her, thanks to Bunnie, letting her know that they wanted answers. There was a tense awkward silence that felt like it dragged on forever, as Fiona was very uncomfortable with admitting it to them, especially since while they did look like her old friends, they were in reality people she had been smashing robots with and having meals with for only just a few weeks.

Finally, she sighed heavily, deciding to tell them because it was clear that keeping too many secrets from them when they could tell she had them would make her look untrustworthy, and risk losing the faith in her from Freedom Fighters that she had missed for so long, and replacing it with irritating and depressing suspicion. It was better to just be honest. " YOU know… " she said looking at the young queen in the eyes uncomfortable, and then said with downcast eyes, " THAT. "

There was a brief silence as Bunnie-FN looked completely confused and lost, but the implications were not lost on Queen Sally, who was starting to get what she meant, but wasn't sure if her hunch was correct. Fiona, since she was under the assumption that they all completely understood already, continued briefly, " And I'd rather Scourge not know about it. I almost got caught once and had to lie about it for a few nights, and lemme tell you, resisting the urge and missing out like that was NOT easy. We just cuddled instead as if nothing was different, but I still felt like I was cheating myself out of it. "

Finally, Bunnie-FN got it, and her and Queen Sally's eyes seemed to get as wide as saucers as it dawned on them what she meant by being late. She continued with a lovestruck blissful smile, " You wouldn't expect it from a guy who calls himself Scourge, but he can be SO loving and gentle! Not to mention just plain good at it all around! Great kisser, to say the least. Don't tell him I told ya this, but he really goes out of his way to show me how much he loves me, as much as he can. So I hate missin' out just to try and keep a secret. "

Queen Sally stammered all wide-eyed and taken aback, " You're, you're late, for THAT? " Fiona said looking worried and embarrassed, " Yeah, I hope you can understand why I didn't wanna talk about it. Especially since we like just met. What are ya worried… What? "


	14. Chapter 12

Meanwhile, Scourge was sitting on the living room armchair near Detective Sonic as they were waiting through TV commercials, bragging to him and gloating as he frowned resentfully with his arms crossed ignoring him. By this point, it had gotten to the topic the blue hedgehog was surprised he hadn't started with in the first place with his girlfriend always being around, as Scourge asked with a self-assured smile, " How's your love life, Blue? Things didn't go so well for the Prime Sonic, from what Fi told me, " and a tone that ended up being more friendly than he expected. He had spent so much time taunting and gloating at him trying to make him feel insecure that it had become hard to keep it up, and he ended up talking to him like a casual acquaintance. " It's going great, thank you very much! Mina and I are very happy together, " he replied defensively.

With his right arm on the arm of the armchair, Scourge teased with a chuckle, " Oh really? Then where is she now? " He responded unhappily and slightly bitterly, " Another concert. The whole singer business makes her pretty busy. " Scourge said casually, " Man, if I had only known she'd be like that later on back on Mobius Prime, I wouldn't have even bothered! Pretty or not, an absentee girlfriend just ain't worth it, pal, not when the whole point is to get some loving. Life is to be enjoyed, and you're missing out if you don't get the chick who'll spend the most amount of time per day makin' out with ya. " Annoyed with him thinking he could give him his idea of wise life advice, Sonic-FN asked him, " Does her personality factor into this at all? "

Scourge considered it for a moment, and then said, " W-Well, depends. You probably should actually like her, or you'll get sick of her eventually, no matter how great a kisser she is. I didn't think so at first, but eventually with my first girlfriend, I started to realize she was so much of a nag that no amount of kissing was making up for it. " Then he muttered sadly and bitterly with his arms crossed, " Not to mention she had no qualms about flippin' me and tryin' to start a fight with me just to get a challenge. Screw that noise. "

Of course, hedgehog ears being sensitive and all, the teenaged detective heard him loud and clear and said, " Wait, challenge? She tried to hurt you? " Scourge looked at him immediately embarrassed that he heard him, and then was promptly surprised that the alternate Sonic felt so sorry for him. " What kinda girlfriend would do that? That's abusive! That ain't right, no matter who you are, " he continued.

There was an awkward silence as Scourge avoided his sympathetic gaze, embarrassed as it dawned on him that Alicia even put him in that kind of position, and then he replied, " I'm way stronger than her. She couldn't dream of trying to humiliate me like that now. Especially not since she's, well, ' landslided. ' " Sonic-FN said looking sad, " What? You serious?! She's… gone?... Well, at least it wasn't you who did her in. It's weird enough with my evil twin being around as a ' partner ' all the time and I wanna be able to sleep at night. "

" Can it with the ' evil twin ' stuff, already, " Scourge replied resentfully pointing at him. Being constantly reminded that he was just a counterpart of the alternate Sonic he was talking to was a recurring event that always made him regret going to talk to him, even if just briefly. " It's hard not to when it's true. You ARE evil. But if it means that much to you, I'll try not to say it from now on, " the blue hedgehog said from his pity about earlier.

Wanting to get back on topic, Scourge quickly cleared his throat and then resumed with his bragging saying, " The point is, Blue, you're not getting any. And with me, it's like EVERY night! She's the most affectionate girl I ever met! I can barely even remember a night where she didn't! Ever since we started all this zone-hopping together. It's every night for the past few months! "

" Can we drop it, I'm very uncomfortable! Besides, that's physically impossible, every night! Y-You know, why, " the Sonic with the detective suit complained. " Well yeah, obviously, I didn't mean literally. There was a two day interlude, last week, but that was it, " Scourge said with a shrug at the end. " Wait, JUST two days? Just ONE interlude? " he replied looking at him suspiciously. " Yeah, what's the big deal? " Scourge said.

Sonic-FN explained while walking up to him and looking pretty serious as well as clearly wanting to get off the topic as soon as possible, " Scourge, _I've_ had experience with the ladies too, and while Mina's busy a lot, even I know that two days is _pretty_ _short_. And only two days of a break after months? That's not right. " After a second, Scourge asked getting defensive, " What d'ya mean? " leaning forwards in the armchair at him.

Deciding to be blunt and therefore get it out of the way quicker, he told him, " It means that either she's got somethin' wrong with her internally makin' her body all outta whack, " continued while smirking up in his face, " you're LYING, " and then said, " you're misremembering, or she's gonna have a nasty surprise for you, nine, months, from now. "

With his pupils shrunken, Scourge started to sweat saying nervously, " W-What?! " as anxiety started to come to him, and Sonic-FN teased him with a smile, " You're the king of your own planet, right? Then you better start getting prepared for the heir to the throne. "

Scourge snapped at him, " You're just tryin' to psych me out! What are ya, jealous of us? It's not gonna work! " but the clear panic in his tone and the shakiness of his voice was implying that it was getting to him.

Since the armchair was big enough for two people, Sonic-FN had no difficulty with sitting beside him on it to tease him some more by treating him like an old pal, asking, " What, is that a dealbreaker? " Scourge looked irritated and exclaimed, " Of course not! " and then explained more calmly, " It's like I said, she's the most affectionate girlfriend I ever had. I'd be an idiot to give that up. Any other girl wanting to be with a bad boy like me is always just twisted on the inside, and I got sick of that real fast. Alicia was a pain, Buns never got along with Miles and kept whining about being called out on it, and don't get me started on Rouge. But Fi's the ultimate catch! "

Sonic-FN got up from the armchair and asked awkwardly with pity, " Enough to let ya handle a baby around her? I heard they cry, a lot! Loudly. " This clearly made him nervous, but he quickly said with a shrug, " So I'll warp away when that happens. I got a zone-link generator, I can do that. "

The blue hedgehog said sarcastically with a condescending smile, " I'm sure she won't mind, " thinking of how things could go wrong if she starts resenting him for the absenteeism, calling him a deadbeat. Scourge pointed right in his face saying angrily, " It'll be FINE! Can you quit it with the taunting, Sonic, it's _not_ helping! And it's not funny either. Ya bully! " his voice slightly cracking from sheer stress at the end of the second sentence.

With the blue hedgehog looking surprised, regretful and alarmed with shrunken pupils, that at least made Scourge feel a little better, about himself at actually achieving that with a Sonic, and he continued more casually, " I'd like to see YOU have to deal with the possibility of becoming a father. 'Sides, that's future me's problem! And she's been very accepting of everything else I do. She even humored me when I decided to try to blow up her ex's stupid city on a whim. " " You what?! " Sonic-FN exclaimed, and then wondered why he had been so surprised. He thought, " _I guess it was all those missions with him just smashin' robots and machines like one of the heroes. Why else would I forget?_ "

Scourge said nonchalantly, " Ah, it was just a whim, I'd never _bother_ with that again. Destruction's only satisfying if I'm causing it with my spines! Or fists. You're missing my point. She couldn't have been comfortable with it, but even _that_ didn't make her abandon me. She'll understand. She always does, and it'd be unreasonable of her not to. "

Then he said annoyed again, " And that's pretending what you say is even true! Chances are I'm just remembering it wrong and she had plenty of other breaks, I just forgot 'cause I live in the present and not the past. " Sonic-FN, going back to the couch since the commercials for the action movie had ended, said, " I sure hope so. You're too young for all of that stuff. At my age, I'd hate to be a dad. "

Scourge, ignoring the anxiety and pressure he was feeling, soon smiled saying, " You got Tails, right? That's a kid you're raisin'. And I did the same thing for years. I've already got plenty of experience with having a kid, and mine won't have the kind of, uh, troubles, that he has. " He looked awkward scratching behind his ear saying, " Now the baby thing, that's a whole 'nother story, " and Sonic-FN found himself genuinely smiling at seeing him like that instead of smirking for once, realizing that Scourge's relatable awkwardness was endearing to him, and his evil twin said with a warm smile,

" But she'll take care of it. I trust her, the affectionate girlfriend'll be the affectionate parent! She'll be spending so much time all crazy about the kid, she won't even notice I'm off on adventures without her. It'd kinda suck not having her company around with the exciting stuff going on, though, can't drag a kid into any of that. Part of the whole reason I liked her in the first place was that she joined in on the fun, illegal or not! " He sighed and said in exasperation, " Ugh, let's just watch the movie. I'm sick of talkin' about it, " and Sonic-FN nodded saying, " Agreed. " Deep down, he was glad that he got to talk about that with him.

At that very moment, Fiona was being faced with the undeniable truth as her new friends were very quick to tell her. Queen Sally said to her looking worried and serious, " Fiona, this is a big deal! You're sure you're that late? You're not misremembering it? " " Yes, I'm sure, " she replied feeling increasingly more worried as she sat on the lid of the toilet feeling a sense of dread.

Bunnie-FN said, " Then combine that with the morning sickness and you're pregnant, girl, " and the mere mention of the word had Fiona gasp and wince a lot, and exclaim unhappily, " We don't know that! M-Maybe I really DO have something wrong with me, and it's just never gonna happen again because of that, and I also got a little flu or something to explain the nausea. "

Queen Sally sighed heavily, kneeled to eye level and put her hands on her shoulders saying compassionately, " Fiona, wishful thinking will only last for so long. This is a big deal! Having a kid is the ultimate test to a relationship! " Bunnie-FN then reassured her, " Cheer up, girl! At least now you'll get to find out if he REALLY cares for ya! It's the perfect test! " " But I didn't WANT a test! " she said sadly, and felt really frustrated and ashamed that tears were coming to her eyes in front of them.

She put her hands on her head as well as over her eyes with her head lowered, hoping that this would hide the fact that she was crying and just make her look overwhelmed at least, although it didn't fool either of them, as Bunnie-FN quickly put her warm organic hand on her shoulder. She continued sadly, " I just wanted things to keep going as they are! Things were perfect! Why does it all have to end?! " Queen Sally reassured her, " It won't necessarily! Try to relax! "

Fiona took her hands away from her eyes, saw the compassion and forced smile to humor her, and couldn't help but smile a little herself, thinking back to when Sally used to like her as she asked jokingly, " And I'm guessing I couldn't get away with just, not having it? " Bunnie-FN shook her head right away as Queen Sally answered looking a little annoyed, " Bingo. I'm surprised you even suggested it, Fi, it's not your kid's fault she exists. " Fiona smiled a little wiping away a tear saying while looking hopeful, " You think it's a she? " and Sally awkwardly shrugged saying, " Or he, we don't know. The point is, you have it, and you have a responsibility to it. It's the least you could do. "

Fiona sighed happily and found herself hugging her like she was her old friend, saying with a wistful chuckle, " I figured you'd react like that, ' sugar queen. ' Always the softie, " giggling at the end, and for the first time, she said that nickname with nothing but a positive tone of fondness for her. When she had said it to her own Sally, it was sarcastic, because she viewed her as the definition of an Ice Queen, but for the nicest Sally she ever met, it was genuine. Because of that, Queen Sally, despite looking confused, understood that it wasn't meant as an insult as she hugged back saying, " Thank you. "

The hug ended, with Fiona feeling a little self-conscious and frustrated at it at the end since she still hated the Prime Sally, and wondered what this meant about her, and how the Prime Sally would've reacted to seeing this. Before she could continue on that train of thought, the silence was revealed to be an awkward one when it was broken by Queen Sally awkwardly saying,

" Let me ask you something, Fiona, if you don't mind me asking, um… Do either you or him use, protection? " Fiona answered, " I do at least. Scourge doesn't, he thinks it's too much of a hassle, " and sighed unhappily at the idea that his selfishness was what got her into that situation, making it one of the rare times when she resented him for it. Still, she felt sorry for him just at thinking that, angry with herself at the sheer idea of being mad at him for it, because she knew it wasn't intentional on his part.

Bunnie-FN told her, " Well, birth control isn't foolproof, Fi, especially not when only one person in the couple's bothering to use it. " Fiona said unhappily with her head lowered, " I know… I was just hoping it'd… just wait like ten years, until we were ready. He said he wouldn't even be ready to marry me until he's like 30 because he thinks marriage is for old middle-aged people! What am I gonna do?! He might not be ready for committing to this, what if he panics, and cuts and runs?! "

Bunnie-FN reassured her, " Fi, I've seen him around you. He's crazy about you! I've seen how you two interact. Y'all put me and Antoine to shame sometimes! He wouldn't want to be without you. " Fiona replied, " That's true, and he's very stubborn and persistent. He doesn't give up easy. Especially not on me. " She thought about how Scourge was proud of being able to say that he took Sonic's girlfriend and how he wouldn't want to give that up. He'd never be able to replace her. Would he? She then asked herself nervously, " What if he finds another Fiona? With a crying baby to deal with, I wouldn't be able to compete! " full of dread, and the silence around her wasn't exactly reassuring.

Queen Sally asked her, " How are you two on the parents situation? What were your parents like? " Fiona winced, and admitted, " Not great. Scourge's parents were the definition of neglectful. His mom spent all day talking on her Bluetooth being a businesswoman and his dad was almost never there! They never even celebrated his birthday! And I don't remember my parents at all. They ditched me for all I know. I have NO solid foundation for how to raise a kid! Aside from how I saw Sonic taking care of Tails, and how Scourge treated Miles, which was even more affectionate. " Queen Sally reassured with a hopeful smile, " There you go! That's perfect! Just focus on that and you'll be fine. "

Fiona said nervously, " It's just that I'm trying as hard as I can and I just can't imagine him putting up with a crying baby! He's very impatient. He puts a lot of focus on enjoying himself above all else, it's like a whole life philosophy to him! He's not gonna be happy having to deal with the crying, he'll just run off telling me to call him when it stops. And I'll just have to accept it, if I want him around. " She hoped she wouldn't grow to resent him for it when she loved him so much, and that he wouldn't resent her, or even worse, their kid, for making their relationship more distant.

Bunnie said idealistically, " Maybe he won't mind as much if it's his own kid. The moment he holds it in his arms, that's when the magic'll happen! " She sighed heavily rolling her eyes at that, and Queen Sally ended the conversation by reassuring her, " You'll see. He loves you too much to just stop being around you entirely. He'll just have one problem, and you'll deal with it together. It's all about whether _you_ can accept him. And if not, no big deal! For what it's worth, Fiona, you'll always be welcome in my home. " She couldn't help but smile in relief at hearing that; even if she lost Scourge, she wouldn't have to go back to being alone.

As the months passed, it became increasingly harder for Fiona to hide it. She was able to put it off for a while by changing to wearing an outfit that hid her midriff and was a little baggy, while still being low-cut and whatnot to make Scourge find it appealing. Her last change in clothes was a long black dress. But eventually he realized that the truth couldn't be denied anymore.

When he did, he didn't confront her on it, wanting to skip what he figured would be a stressful conversation for both sides, and instead they kept on doing what they were before, spending every day assassinating Robotniks for a couple hours and then going on missions with the FN Freedom Fighters just for the excitement of it.

Several months later, Scourge started telling her to take it easy and sit missions out, while keeping her as the ray gun holder because tasering Robotniks only required standing there for a minute. It wasn't until a civilian on the street near the castle said to them in the passing, " Congratulations! And good luck! Is it a boy or a girl? " in response to the way she looked, that he couldn't fake obliviousness anymore.

Fiona stammered looking incredibly nervous, with a sinking feeling terrified of how he'd react. Scourge immediately said casually with his arm around her, " We don't know yet, we'd rather be surprised. Come on Fi, dinner's ready! " and ran to the dining room with the others, leaving her looking dumbfounded.

Taking care not to run herself, she went up to him and whispered sitting next to him, " How long were you waiting to tell me that you knew? That could've been a huge load off for me! You know how worried I was?! "

With everyone being served steak and mashed potatoes, Scourge replied shrugging as Frost and Queen Sally were the only ones able to overhear, " As long as I could, sweets. Sorry I guess. Didn't wanna have that awkward conversation. Take it as my way of sayin', it's fine. it's not a deal breaker for me. " With everyone in the kitchen realizing what they were talking about, Fiona said looking hopeful, " It's not? "

Scourge continued, " I already got experience raising Miles! How hard could it be? The most awesome Sonic in existence can deal with a kid just fine! I'd be lying if I said there'd be no problem when it's out, but you're the best girlfriend I've ever had! Let's just make an agreement that when the baby's all loud, I won't have to hear it. I don't know if I could stand it, especially if it's all night. Maybe I'll warp away, maybe I'll get some industrial strength ear plugs, whatever it takes. As long as that one problem is outta the way, I'll put up with everything else. Miles was a tough kid to raise, " he whispered, " with the PTSD, " and said, " After that anything would be easy. Just don't make me have to hear the crying for hours on end. Will that be too much to ask? "

He then looked worried at the idea that she'd get really annoyed with him, and she replied reluctantly, " Alright. You couldn't be faulted for that, _I'm_ not looking forward to it either. Neither of us are ready, but we'll deal with it together, " held his hand, and thought, " _As a family… It's just a shame he still hasn't proposed. I guess he's waiting to see if he can handle the ' test ' first. Why do it now when the future's uncertain?_ "

Queen Sally then reassured them, " It's not like you'll have to look after him or her all the time. Bunnie and I will be happy to babysit when it's necessary. " While Scourge immediately responded, " Awesome! We can still go do fun stuff together! So you see, Fi, nothing will really change! " Fiona looked stunned and nervous, and asked,

" Are you SURE it's okay? You have to promise me you won't grow to resent me for it. One Sally's bad enough. Well, two with Alicia, but she never gave me a chance anyways. " With everyone at the kitchen table smiling to various degrees, even Sonic-FN, Queen Sally responded happily, " You guys took down Robotnik! It's the least we could do! Don't think I haven't forgotten about that in the six months we've known you. "

Fiona sighed in relief, and said, " Thank you. I won't take too much advantage of it, I don't wanna be a, female deadbeat dad, or whatever. I promise. How about we alternate so I have some days off a week, but not all? "

As Sally agreed, " Perfect! We'll tell you the schedules when the time comes. As queen, I'll be pretty busy though, so it'll mostly be Bunnie, " Scourge still looked stunned, speechless at the word deadbeat from earlier, and started reflecting unhappily on how his parents were. They were always busy doing something, and he remembered that when he was a kid, he promised himself that he wouldn't be the kind of apathetic neglectful parents they were. He didn't want his own kid to grow up hating him, and make the same mistake his parents did.

Then he remembered that he had already made the same mistake with Miles, who resented him for most of the time they were friends because once he got a girlfriend, he barely spent any quality time alone with him. He had become too busy. With that in mind, he found himself agreeing with Fiona's plan to only sometimes have a babysitter, which at first had disappointed him at the idea of him constantly doing exciting things without her. He didn't want to make the same mistake as his father, so he promised himself that he would try to beat him at his own game, just like with Sonic, and be there.

" It's a girl, " the doctor said months later when Scourge went into the hospital room where Fiona was. He had left for the entire duration to avoid having to deal with her suffering through it all. Fiona, with a content and relieved smile, was lying in bed holding a newborn red fox Mobian covered with a blue baby blanket in her arms, and he immediately noticed her green eyes staring up at her, the same green eyes he used to have. There was something about a baby looking directly upwards that was the cutest sight in the multiverse, and even he couldn't ignore it. Noticing him staring awkwardly from the door, Fiona asked with a nervous smile, " Don't you wanna hold her? There's no better time to do it! "

There was a brief silence from him not being used to any of this, before Scourge walked over to her with an awkward smile, sat down on the bed beside her with a blank expression on his face, and found himself really hoping she wouldn't get hurt as she was carefully brought into his arms by her mother. Before he knew it, he was holding a warm, cute little red fox baby, who was staring up at him with innocent green eyes having no idea what was going on and who she was looking at.

Wanting to avoid an awkward silence, he started actually trying to talk to her, feeling self-conscious the whole time. " Hi. Uh. Phoebe… I'm new at this, so bear with me, capiche? I think I'm gonna like you! But just try to keep the crying to a minimum. I got enough of that from Miles. And at least he was quiet. " She lightly grabbed the finger he was pointing at her and giggled the cutest giggle he ever heard, clearly taking a liking to him in his awkwardness.

" You're pretty cute! Makes perfect sense, your mom's such a looker! You'll be a beautiful girl some day, I bet, " Scourge commented with a grin, looking back at Fiona flirtatiously at the end. " And she's got her father's eyes, " Fiona pointed out cheerfully. " Exactly. The perfect combination of good-looking rogues. Of course she's adorable! So, uh, I should really introduce myself. I'm Scourge the Hedgehog, the most badass law-breaker and the fastest thing alive! And someday, I'll make my mark out there, by destroying every evil Robotnik in the multiverse! No more tyrants turning people into robots will be left when I'm done. You're gonna be so impressed! I hope, " and he really hoped that she wouldn't grow to disapprove of him for his harsh methods. He didn't want his own kid to be scared of him, even if it might make her behave.

Then he sighed and gently handed her back to Fiona muttering while feeling like an idiot, " Why am I talking to someone that can't understand a word I'm sayin'? " He clearly had no familiarity with anything like baby talk and was just talking to her like a person who could understand him, and it seemed like Fiona would be the same way. " It's how they learn how to talk, and understand you. Even if they don't know what you're saying, they appreciate it anyways. She loves the quality time, I can just tell. And you can tell her anything, without ever being judged. Isn't that great? " Fiona replied with a smile, holding her.

Scourge liked the sound of that, and said, " She's perfect. " Of course, they were sure she would demonstrate some flaws later on in life when she'd be able to talk, especially considering the kinds of parents she came from, but at the moment, her only flaw would be making noise. Fiona thought back to Bunnie-FN and smiled as she realized that somehow, she was right, that all that Sonic's evil twin had to do was look into his daughter's eyes for the magic to start to happen. She hoped it would be enough to let him forgive her and be patient with her, since it wouldn't be all fun and games, for a person who wanted life to be nothing but.

Their arrangement worked as well as it could've, as Fiona tried not to hold it against Scourge for leaving the castle when Phoebe was crying. They kept her at Queen Sally's castle, in the Film Noir pocket dimension, since it was the closest to a permanent residence the two traveling vigilantes had. This also meant that they kept her crib and Fiona and Scourge's new bed there, and toys in general, in a guest room that was specially prepared for their daughter a few months ago.

Scourge was allowed to leave when the baby was crying, leading to him spending some nights holding Frost in his arms as a little brother figure to compensate for Fiona not being there. Fiona and Scourge still showed their love to each other, but at different times than the night when the baby was supposed to be asleep as soon as possible. Because of this, the only major problem Scourge had, the closest there was to it, was that Fiona made some days every week where she was simply too busy spending time with the baby to join in on the fun with him, whether that was crime for the sake of it or going with the FN Freedom Fighters smashing robots and whatnot with them for the fun of it.

Either way, daughter or not, he was continuing to cause as much destruction as possible, for good or evil, doing what he could to have fun and feel like he had the freedom to do whatever he wanted, as he liked to sugarcoat it. But he always felt a depressing emptiness whenever Fiona wasn't there. Sometimes she was, thanks to the babysitting days of the week, but whenever she wasn't, he kept thinking about how he wished she had been there to see him do impressive things, and wished that she was there to remind him about stuff or warn him about things or give advice whenever he made an impulsive mistake from his inexperience at missions like that.

He felt lonely without her, wishing she was there to kiss whenever he felt like it and cheer him up, despite the fact that he spent some of that time around other girls, whether it was FN Sally, Bunnie, or even Mina since she was Sonic's girlfriend in that zone. It was that loneliness that constantly reminded him that leaving Fiona because she had a baby to deal with would be a huge mistake, because he knew what it was like without her, and that no other girl, no matter how he tried to imagine things, would be as endearing to him.

Speaking of endearing to him, that was exactly how his daughter was, since the rogue couple had the very good fortune to have a happy, good-natured baby who indeed kept the crying to a minimum. The years went by as they kept up the usual schedule of rebelling against society, fighting the sub-bosses destroying their robots and major buildings, and most importantly, getting rid of Robotniks for a few hours each day, with Scourge enjoying how he was showing off how powerful and capable he was all the while in the excitement.

The only difference was the cheerful and naïve little girl they would come home to. Or Queen Sally's home, at least, but they came to think of it as their own as well. By the time Phoebe Fox was almost 4, the influence of her parents growing up was becoming increasingly focused on convincing her that her parents were doing the right things, because while Scourge didn't want to ever be that type of self-righteous holier-than-thou person in truth, he still didn't want his own daughter to become scared of him and see him as a monster.

She tended to make it clear that she thought of Scourge as the biggest hero of her life, the most heroic person in the multiverse, no matter how much Scourge bragged and boasted about being a bad boy, and her parents had been reinforcing that belief since she was a baby, with Fiona telling her bedtime stories about heroes defeating evil villains by attacking them enough in a valiant fight until they fell asleep forever. Fiona ended off one of her bedtime stories with, " And with the final blow with his sword, the valiant knight finally slayed the evil dragon, saving the town from the curse that they'd been put under! A parade was held to honor him, and they all lived happily ever after! " her almost 4-year-old redhaired daughter lying in bed listening intently with a smile.

The sheer idea that his daughter might only admire and like him and be comfortable around him because she thought he was a hero was worrying to Scourge, who based his entire individuality around doing things his way and not Sonic's. Fiona, wanting to be a bad girl, had that worry, too. But Fiona regularly reassured him that as long as he did things his way, it didn't matter if some of the things he did were what Sonic would do, too, because he was still being unique with his harsh methods. " Sonic would never kill anyone, " she always reasoned with him. But in spite of that, he continued to remind everyone of his bad boy persona and image, boasting about it whenever he had an excuse.

Speaking of boasting, however, he gradually did that less and less to Sonic-FN over time. The blue hedgehog noticed it, remarking at one point, " Gettin' humble? " and Scourge ended up admitting, " Well, bragging and boasting the same things over and over again gets repetitive after a while. I could only remind you that I'm better-looking, faster, stronger, cooler and a better kisser so many times before even I got bored of it. I guess I'm all gloated out. Be grateful, Blue. " And he was, smiling a little finding it sweet. He often asked himself if he was crazy for even being able to warm up to his evil twin at all.

Of course, Phoebe wasn't just influenced by Fiona and Scourge. Living in Queen Sally's castle, she grew up surrounded with the Freedom Fighters of the Film Noir universe, and whether Scourge liked it or not, that meant she grew to view those " do-gooders " as extensions of her own family. They were her aunts and uncles, from Rotor to Antoine to Bunnie, and as the Freedom Fighters in question found it sweet and adorable, and gladly reciprocated the affection, her parents wondered at times if she would have the same attachment to the " goody-two-shoes " they had left behind.

Ever since she was 2, for as early as she was able to watch TV and talk about it, she thought Detective Sonic was her uncle, since even she could recognize the resemblance to Scourge, and Scourge was of course pretty annoyed and awkward about it at first and couldn't help imagining how the Prime Sonic would joke about it if he knew. On the other end, Fiona was surprised when her daughter started calling Queen Sally " Aunt Sally, " like Tails did with his own Sally, and when she decided to stop correcting her, it dawned on her just how close their friendship had become.

She never would've expected when she left the Freedom Fighters for Scourge that she would end up having an alternate version of Sally as her close friend and babysitter, when she still viewed her own Sally as a cold judgmental ice queen who would never be supportive of her " following her heart " to be with Scourge, since he didn't have the same morality that she did. But over time, she realized that she had gradually mellowed out on her old friends, who she used to have nothing but resentment and derisive condescension for, because she had ended up replacing them with reasonable facsimiles of them as if to fill a void in her life. All because they accepted her into their lives.

She hadn't even intended to do that, as she thought she was only tolerating them to go on robot-smashing control-tower-destroying missions with them. But Phoebe made it impossible to ignore that now she could have her cake and eat it too, being a Freedom Fighter while still having Scourge, and the way she always remembered him. She often reflected on just how lucky she was to get that, and how she probably didn't deserve such a happy ending for herself, when she looked back on some of the things she did, especially breaking Tails' heart. Occasionally, she wondered if going through the trouble of apologizing would make her feel a little better, or just be more tedium than it was worth.

She would often regal her daughter with stories of her time as a Freedom Fighter on Mobius, which Scourge didn't entirely mind since he was curious about that time himself, and knew firsthand how fun destroying robots and Robotnik's communications towers could be, but he tended to push Fiona to tell her about her time as a treasure hunter before she joined Sonic, as well. He was still Sonic's evil twin, after all, so he didn't know if he wanted his daughter to only lean towards Sonic's side morally; that would just be begging for trouble later down the line because she'd find out her father's past eventually.

He didn't want her, or anyone, to be righteous just for the sake of doing what society wanted without questioning their morals. He wanted her to be her own person and come to her opinions and goals on her own, without realizing the irony of how he was raising her to support him anyways, which Sonic-FN occasionally dismissed as " brainwashing, " much to his irritation.

He never really told her just how much of a terror he had been on Anti-Mobius, especially his time as King Scourge, where he even went as far as making part of Anti-Angel Island go down in flames as Anti-Knuckles swore revenge on him. That wasn't even mentioning what he did to his own father – which Phoebe, a real daddy's girl, could be horrified at if she learned about it at too young an age – or the fact that he had the island Miles was bullied for years on razed to the ground with explosives dropped by helicopters after personally spindashing around it, all in the name of karma against the kid's oppressors. He realized that that was the first time he had done something evil in the interests of basically doing something good, standing up to Miles' bullies and giving them a punishment. So that act at least, he thought he might be able to tell her about to her support, but he realized that he would also have to tell her all about the horrible ways Miles was treated to get her to understand his reaction first, and he didn't want to upset her with all of that until she was at least a little older.

At the very least, he had the perfect way to make her hate humanity and understand his rebelling against society that way, but he didn't feel like doing it right away. He found her naïve innocence endearing, and didn't want to ruin that until she wasn't cute anymore. Perhaps when she would become more of a rowdy teenager, he'd tell her all about it, to avoid her rebelling against him later on. It was frustrating to him, that most of his proud stories about his past couldn't really be bragged about in front of her, especially when it involved Kintobor, because the one time Fiona mentioned him in front of her, there was an awkward silence as she asked, " Who's that? " and Scourge had to admit,

" The good Robotnik, from my universe. " " There's a good Robotnik? How? " she questioned, and he admitted awkwardly, " That's what I keep being told, anyways. He runs a hospital tower and he loves nature. My old ' friend ' Buns Rabbot ditched me to work for him, after he said he could cure her overly depressing disease. She's still in a robot suit keeping it from getting worse for all I know. I don't really check back home no more. I-It's way better here. " " Oh, cool! Huh. A good Robotnik. Could I meet him some day? " she asked innocently.

There was an uncomfortable silence between Scourge and Fiona looking at each other, before Scourge said, " Sorry, sweetie. He's, uh, I don't think that's necessary. " She looked disappointed, and after some careful consideration where she decided not to just lie that he was dead, Fiona then came up with the half-truth, " We don't know what universe he traveled to. He's looking for medical techniques to heal Buns. Who knows where he is. It's not a big deal right now, we're better off focusing on the Robotniks who ruin people's lives. "

He was pretty awkward and uncomfortable about the fact that his daughter had a great big smile of admiration when learning about his old enemy. It was impossible to ignore the fact that if she found out he used to spend so much time bothering someone that he couldn't even remotely justify as deserving it, there would be trouble. He tried not to believe that he was actually regretful and ashamed of the way he acted against him, outraged just at the very idea because he saw it as losing his identity, rather than as gradually changing for the better as life went on. Sometimes he complained with rants like, " It's not fair! If he had been trying to kill me, I would've been completely justified! NOT that I care about whether I'm doing the right thing. I care about FEELING good, not being good. It's just that Kintobor was lame, that's all... "

Scourge was on the sofa watching an action movie with Fiona in the evening, with the FN Sally busy with her royal duties and the other Freedom Fighters busy celebrating Antoine-FN's birthday at a French restaurant, something Scourge wasn't interested in doing and only said to save some of the food for him. In front of them was a red fox girl with her short hair in pigtails and an orange headband, wearing a yellow and black dress, opening a color book for the first time with crayons all around her. As their three-year-old daughter started with her coloring book, she noticed a picture of a tree, and asked Scourge, " Daddy, which color do you think I should pick? " with a cute smile.

" Whatever ya want, kiddo! You're an artist, be creative! Don't let society tell you what colors the trees should be! Screw what society thinks and be your own person! " he suggested with a smile and his arms crossed, to the amusement of Fiona from him always trying to think of an excuse to try to influence her. " _That's so him,_ " she thought cheerfully, seeing nothing wrong with it.

Phoebe said in excitement, " I'll color it purple then! Purple and pink, " and as she got started, Fiona commented, " Cool, like some sort of psychedelic magical universe where the trees are all upside-down or something. Like the Zone of Silence. " Phoebe, who had already been told all about that zone from her based-on-a-true-story bedtime stories, instead asked with curiosity, " So what IS wrong with society, anyways? Why do you wanna rebel? Just curious. I always love hearing your stories. "

Scourge was caught off guard by the question, since no one had the guts to ask him that in years, and looked nervous and awkward, saying while fidgeting, " Well, uh, um, " as Fiona looked on during the dull part of the movie looking worried. He mumbled unhappily with his head lowered scratching the back of his neck, " They're, uh, stuck-up and all. "

Phoebe, trying to help him as she wondered why even he didn't know why he was such a rebel, asked, " Who? " using the crayons to draw a pink bird on the tree branch that wasn't in the coloring book at all, after coloring the branches of the tree light purple using her left hand. She was ambidextrous, but Scourge encouraged her to be a lefty as just another way to be unique and special. Scourge said a bit more confidently, " The ones in charge. The authority figures. They make up these stupid rules and apply them in all cases even when it's not right. It's frustrating as hell, so I rebel. "

Phoebe giggled saying, " Hey, that rhymes! " which made Fiona smile looking at him, while Scourge only slightly smiled from the cuteness since he thought she missed his point entirely. Then Phoebe said with her right hand on her chin and legs up in the air behind her as she laid on the floor on her chest coloring, " I get it, Daddy. I see 'em on TV sometimes. Especially the bad guys ruling the worlds and stuff in shows and movies, burning down cities and stuff. And especially Robotniks! I wanna rebel against them too. They're stupid and mean, so it's only right. "

Scourge smiled, although there was always a worry in the back of his mind that by thinking it was " right " and hating " bad guys " she was unintentionally being raised to turn against her own parents. She had to find out they were villains eventually. Fiona said to help Scourge out, " It's not just the bad guys, sweetheart. Even so-called heroes can be real jerks. Even the people on councils making the big decisions for countries can deserve to be rebelled against, provided that they're being stupid and annoying with what they're doing. " Phoebe simply replied, " And being bad guys as a result! " which worried her parents.

It might only be a matter of time before she would realize that he was in the same position as the bad guys she saw on TV causing mindless destruction. That was the main reason he didn't want to bring her to visit Moebius; he had seen from his zone-link generator how much people hated him there, the legacy he had made for himself. He even saw people burning effigies of him in a festival celebrating the days that he'd left the zone. As he sadly looked on seeing just how little " respect " the same people who bowed down to him really had for him, he tried to ignore the fact that by not taking over worlds like before, he might have learned the very lesson it was teaching him, which to him was a bad thing because he was giving them exactly what they wanted, instead of rebelling against them for hating him so much.

While walking down the streets of a Moebian slum he used to terrorize on a dark night, Scourge had tried to smirk and chuckle like a demented psychopath at the ruins of the places he'd destroyed, acting like he made his mark as an intimidating presence, the ultimate bad boy, strutting confidently with his head high. But ultimately, his heart wasn't into it, his strut slowing to a walk of shame, because he couldn't help being unhappy at how little he was loved, seeing an entire dimension wishing death on him. He sighed heavily with his head lowered. Unaware that Kintobor was watching his reaction.

For his entire life, especially once he took over his planet, he had been wanting the respect he " deserved, " and he wasn't getting it from being destructive. He loved being destructive, though, finding it satisfying, cathartic and liberating smashing things with his power. Not using his power would be a waste, he thought, seeing it as nothing but destruction potential. He just wished that there could be an entire dimension of just things to destroy with no people in the way to give people an excuse to call him evil for it. He thought unhappily, " _It was so fun though, wasn't it? Causing mayhem, wrecking havoc?_ _It's such a shame those annoying people have to get in the way… by trying to make me feel guilty._ "

He had certainly made his mark on Moebius, especially with a certain island he destroyed. He didn't want his daughter to see any of that and potentially turn on him or become scared of him, especially if she found out what he did to make Anti-Knuckles so upset as the king. It also didn't help that the entire planet was divided in civil war from the fact that he left a giant power vacuum upon leaving, especially when Miles had already done that when he left to become a Freedom Fighter.

After leaving Moebius during his brief time reflecting back on it, he had told a concerned Fiona in front of the portal there, " I don't want my kid going to a place like this. Not only will they poison her against me, but the daughter of King Scourge? Those warring bozos are gonna be after her in seconds. I ain't takin' no chances. Maybe 30 years from now, I'll take it over again, but not when she's so easily influenced. "

Scourge was taken from his train of thought when his little girl asked in the present day, " What made you start rebelling? I mean, it must be pretty scary starting out with breaking rules, and trying to avoid being punished for them! Not to mention being disapproved of. That's why I follow the rules at home, I want my family to, keep _liking_ me. You're so brave, being able to rebel no matter what. What made ya start? "

Scourge thought a little reaching deep down inside before admitting sadly and bitterly, " My dad. All he did was run the world lapping up praise from people sucking up to him, while making me hold his cape. He didn't care about me, so I wanted to punish him for it in the only way I could think of. I dedicated myself to being THE most rebellious kid who ever lived! Got a leather jacket and shades and broke any rule I could find! And he still barely talked to me. Too damn busy. " He felt his eyes start to water, and forcibly willed them to go back to normal with an angry expression. Phoebe asked him recognizing his sad tone, " So it was pointless? "

" N-No, of course not, it got me started and made me who I am. An individual! My own person! That's the most important thing to focus on, Pheebs. Especially when there's so many different counterparts of people out there, and that could include you. You _gotta_ make sure you're unique! Besides, eventually my dad got what he deserved. It just took a while for me to, get motivated to… 'c-cause I was lazy, that's all. Nothing else, " he said hurriedly, awkwardly defending his way of life. No one except his little girl could get away with saying his whole lifestyle and motivation for it was pointless to his face. If it was the Prime Sonic, he might have snapped and decked him for it.

" What did'cha do? Did'cha slay him like a Robotnik? " Her happy tone and look of admiration for him reassured him immensely, as he had been avoiding telling her the truth fearing her reaction, and he said with a smile, " Yep, I sure did! And now I'm a better dad than he ever was, remember that. Now could ya try to keep quiet, there's a movie on. Y-Ya got plenty of coloring to do anyway. " She nodded, a little unhappy at not getting any details on how his father had slain the dictator father he had grown up with, completely unaware that she might not have been happy if she had.

Her parents were hoping the movies they watched in the evenings would desensitize her to violence, although she mostly just ignored them and did her own thing, just like Miles, whether that was coloring, cuddling up to her mother just like Miles would with Alicia, or playing video games on her handheld.

When she started running by the time she was 4, Phoebe made it clear that she inherited the super speed Scourge was born with, so it was a good thing for her parents that they could both catch up with her any time she started running around in a red blur, and scoop her up in their arms. The two would dedicate a few hours at least every day to spending time with their daughter, including playing catch with her using a baseball since they got the idea from TV that this was a thing every good parent did, and the games of catch were all the more fun with the three participants moving at high speed in the courtyard of the castle.

" What a cute little girl. Gets it from her mom, " one of the guards of the castle commented, and Fiona said with a smile, " She's got her father's eyes, " with her arm around her looking proud. Her daughter, who was wearing a pink bow in her hair, asked in complete confusion, " But Daddy has BLUE eyes, doesn't he? " Scourge looked self-conscious as Fiona explained with her hand on her shoulder, " He didn't always, " since he still was sore about not always looking different from Sonic, and he explained unhappily, " Didn't always have green fur either, I used to look just like Sonic, minus the dorky detective suit. The best I could do to look cool was my black leather! "

Then he smirked proudly pointing to himself as he explained, " But then I powered myself up a couple years ago and that all changed! A little sample from a Master Emerald makes ALL the difference! " Fiona added, " He used the most magical gem in the Prime universe to make himself a more capable person, " sugarcoating it for her without realizing it, and Pheebs said all wide-eyed, " Cool! I wanna do that! " innocently.

Scourge chuckled finding her adorable and said, " When you're older, kiddo. There's no point to it right now. Even if you could like throw lightning outta your hands, I wouldn't want you going in dangerous situations if you don't hafta. Lucky I even _have_ a daughter, I wanna keep it that way. Maybe when you're 8. "

Fiona said to her disappointed daughter, " Yeah, and besides, the Freedom Fighters already have two super speedy people, not to mention Mina. Just be patient. You're lucky you get to HAVE a safe childhood, you know. I didn't. I didn't have any parents myself, never even got to go to school. " Pheebs said sadly feeling sorry for her, " Yeah, I know Mommy, " having been told all about her past as a treasure hunter. She knew she was abandoned by her parents, and even had to work in a jewel mine thanks to Robotnik, which Fiona used as the first of many stories to raise her daughter to view Robotniks as the ultimate evil.

Scourge said reassuringly as she looked melancholic with downcast eyes, " That's not all bad, school stinks anyways. I stopped going the minute I knew I could get away with it. "

Fiona looked annoyed at him with her hands on her hips, despite reminding herself that she herself didn't go to school and turned out just fine as far as she was concerned, and she said nervously, " Phoebe, I don't know if I want you to follow in his example like that. There won't always be Robotnik sub-bosses out there and whatnot giving you a career fighting them. It's good to learn as much as you can and maximize your potential so you can get whatever job you want! " Scourge said with a shrug, " She could just go to another zone and smash robots with us. She'll be joining in on our fun eventually, as soon as I can be sure she won't get too hurt from it. Maybe when you're a teenager. "

Fiona pointed out, " What if we beat all the Robotniks in the multiverse before that point? Or what if she won't think it's cool to spend her life with her parents doing what they do and wanna rebel, be her own person? " She looked at the confused little girl and said, " Your daddy was no stranger to THAT, lemme tell you. "

Scourge said looking annoyed, " That's because my dad didn't care about anyone but himself. He was begging to be rebelled against! He was askin' for it! But with us, it's different. We promised ourselves we wouldn't make the same mistakes our moms and pops did. SHE has a family that cares about her. " Everyone could see the simmering resentment Scourge had for his father, and was nervous and uncomfortable as a result, with even his daughter finding it tense every time he was angry, even though he was nothing but nice to her.

When Fiona contradicted, " Kids don't exactly need neglectful parents to have a rebellious teen phase, tons of them do it, " Pheebs happily reassured them, " Don't worry, Mommy and Daddy! I'll always think you're cool! You guys dedicate your lives to slaying evil Robotniks and making the multiverse a safe place. And you're STILL rebels! You're the coolest parents ever! I'm glad I have badass heroes like you two around. When I grow up, I wanna be just like you, I don't see why I wouldn't. "

The two criminal vigilantes embraced her in a group hug, with them both finding it sweet and reassuring while Scourge found the way she talked adorable. He admired that she was saying words like " badass " even at her age, proud that his kid was a rebel no matter what the influence of her " Aunt " Sally and the other was, and Fiona, while less comfortable with it, still thought, " ' _Badass. ' You ARE your father's daughter._ " When the hug ended, Fiona said as an ice cream truck started rolling down the street, " Just don't say badass around Sally, she'll just nag you about it. Now let's go get some ice cream! " which made her giggle at the end.


	15. Chapter 13

With a crying newborn vixen girl in his bed being patiently soothed to sleep by Fiona, it was only natural that Scourge decided to leave the castle for a few hours. He left their bedroom and closed the door, and used his zone-link generator to create a portal just outside it. After pressing the arrow buttons on it for a while to get the portal to show him the various different places in another dimension going through them at high speed, he stopped when he finally saw who he wanted; an alternate version of Robotnik. He thought, " _Finally. The perfect target,_ " pressed the yellow button to create the portal officially in one of the other dimensions and ran through the portal, spindashing at the head of the Robotnik in an instant as the portal automatically closed behind him.

He knocked him screaming to the floor of his lab, and shouted, " This is it, Eggman! I'm gonna snap you like a twig! " much to the outrage and confusion of the mad scientist he attacked. With that, he got into a fight with him, taking all of his anger and stress out on him.

Punches and kicks were traded and either dodged or landed, with Scourge only keeping him alive for so long from sadism, as he so gladly pointed out in a taunt, " You know I'm only not immediately icin' ya to have fun with ya. As soon as I get tired and bored, you're finished! " The panicking Robotnik, after being punched in the face, asked from the floor, " I-Isn't there some sort of hedgehog moral code?! You heroes don't- " Scourge then corrected looking serious, " I'm not a hero, " and punched him in the head knocking him out. " NO! " a familiar young voice shouted nearby, causing Scourge to immediately turn around looking alarmed as he sat on top of his chest.

" Tails?! " he exclaimed in confusion, seeing an alternate version of Tails wearing a red Eggman-styled military jacket with golden shoulder plates that was cutely sized down for him to wear, and some goggles on his forehead. He appeared horrified, and looked to be barely 5 years old. The instant he saw him, he realized he was in for a difficult situation. The two-tailed kid shouted with tears in his eyes, " My daddy! You'll pay for this! " and impulsively ran up to him in a rage, knocking him over to the floor in a yellow blur. He managed to get a few punches in while he was lying on top of his scarred chest before Scourge grabbed his wrists angry at being attacked and responded, " Stop! Your _daddy_ , what are you talking about?! "

With his tails swiping and legs kicking frantically behind him wishing he could hit him with them, he replied passionately, " He adopted me! He found me when I was all alone being bullied by a whole town of people and took me into his home, and said he'd give the world what they deserve for not accepting me! He may not be a normal daddy, but he took my side, he keeps me fed, he gives me a soft bed to sleep on that he tucks me into every night with a goodnight kiss, and you killed him! "

Scourge was stunned for a second at the imagery of what he just said, and briefly wondered if he had unintentionally killed one of the good Robotniks without even knowing it, but soon he said, " Goodnight kiss? He really went out of his way to make you think he gives a rat's ass about you! He wasn't on your side, he was just USING you! " His expression looked more worried than bitter by the end.

The other Tails was very miffed at those accusations, not wanting to believe they were true, and shouted, " Liar! " wishing he could wipe away the tears blinding him. Scourge sat up despite the weight on his chest and made him sit up with him as a result, still clutching his wrists keeping them at a distance from him, and he asked him angrily, " Does he make killer robots? How'd he GET revenge? Did he know you could make technology stuff like him before he recruited you? You should know he's the kind of nutjob psycho who would lie to you! "

As a blue-uniformed Snively crept into the room, the two-tailed fox stammered a little before saying angrily, " H-He didn't know I'm a genius, he, I told him! And all of the targets of his robots and stuff are jerks! They deserve it! _Every_ Mobia-" " How do you know he didn't spy on you with his dictator position and technology and find out he could use you? He was just manipulating you, dude! He brainwashed you! " Scourge replied seriously, starting to reveal pity for him in his expression and tone at the end as he loosened his grip on his wrists.

Just then, they both heard a loud sound and turned to see a smirking Robotnik behind glass doors teleporting away with Snively in front of them, implying that he had used a type of escape pod to escape from him. Snively then ran out of the room in a hurry. " He survived, " Scourge whispered looking stunned, and horrified at the prospect that he'd have to go through the tedium of searching for him with the portal-generator all over again. " He did? " the kid said in confusion.

His wrists were let go as Scourge instantly snapped at him, slapping the back of his head turning to face him in a rage shouting, " You IDIOT! " He growled with his fists clenched for a second or two feeling the rage simmer in him as the kid looked scared and sad in front of him, holding his head, and finally Scourge shouted, " Now I have to find him all over again! Thanks a lot! "

He got up and ran after Snively as the alternate Tails exclaimed in fear, " NO! " but before he could finish standing up, it was too late, and the blue-uniformed Snively was lying on the floor with fatal injuries by the time he caught up to them. While he didn't like him nearly as much as his " father, " he still had a clear attachment to him, as he quickly displayed when he smacked Scourge with his tails hitting him against the metal wall behind him. " You jerk! " he exclaimed, and then as Scourge started standing up again in pain trying to hide that he was intimidated, the kid shouted, " Maybe if you hadn't killed him, you could've gotten the information out of him! "

Scourge was surprised hearing that and then looked over at Snively, realizing that he was right; the sniveling traitor would've sold out his uncle in a heartbeat for a chance at saving his own skin. " Damn, " he cursed, feeling like an idiot. He wished he had waited just a couple seconds first. The two-tailed kid punched him in the chest and attacked him with his tails while he was distracted, knocking him against the wall again, but Scourge soon recovered from the blows and punched him in the chest for revenge, getting seriously annoyed at his attacking him, and the added stress of having to fight a kid who looked so much like the little boy he saved from that island and raised as his own wasn't helping. The punch was at a speed that completely outmatched that of Tails', causing the kid to be knocked into the metal wall hard enough to leave some marks in it from dents, and collapse with his eyes closed.

At first, Scourge gasped, thinking while thrown into a panic, " _Not again! NOT again!_ " and rushed to his side, but checking his pulse revealed that he was still alive, before the alternate Tails groaning in pain and hitting him with his tails did, getting him right back into being angry since he had made himself vulnerable with his compassion. The alternate Tails miserably sat up holding the back of his head, dazed with blurry vision from the back of his head hitting the wall.

Scourge shouted, " Do you have any idea who you're dealin' with?! I'm Scourge the Hedgehog, the most badass law-breaker in the world and the fastest thing alive! Stop wasting my time trying to pick a fight you can't win! _Don't_ make me _hurt_ you! " The concern and fear slipped out in his tone at the final sentence, and his expression of anger faltered. The alternate Tails snapped at him, " You already have! If anything happens to my daddy, I'm taking his place in a second and giving you the punishment you deserve! "

Scourge, after being taken aback by what someone like Tails said, realized that if he just killed the Robotniks here and left it at that, he wouldn't have ended up accomplishing much of anything, and that wouldn't prove his point that he was better at Sonic at that kind of thing. Taking down some Robotniks just to have the world taken over by Tails wouldn't be anything to brag about. He had to do something, but just the thought of finishing off the two-tailed fox in front of him only brought back the horrible memory of when a Tails was struck by lightning and killed thanks to him. It horrified him, and he realized he didn't want anything like that to happen again if he could help it. Scourge asked frantically sounding worried, " You're defending a madman, kid! What's it gonna take for me to convince you?! "

Tails whimpered, " You could stop beating me up for starters, " the tears slipping out of his eyes as he became overwhelmed with fear and despair. It made Scourge feel terrible as it dawned on him how he was feeling; he was just seeing him as another bully. Trying to explain himself, Scourge reasoned, " I was just trying to defend myself! If you hadn't gone in trying to hit me, I wouldn't have laid a finger on ya! I'm not like your old bullies! I actually like your extra tail! It's pretty cool! I go zone-hopping all the time and let's just say I've gotten fond of two-tailed foxes. A-A few, anyway. I'm not a total softie. " The child stared at him shocked and wary as he said that to him, having a hard time believing someone could be so accepting of him again, especially with the aching pain in his chest and back.

" I don't believe you! Why'd you call me ' Tails ' making fun of me then?! You're lying! " he replied with a cracking voice. With the tears completely obscuring his vision in a white haze, he closed his eyes and started gasping as his body started shaking uncontrollably, and he put his knees drawn up in front of him with his arms and tails wrapping around them, and begged him with a breaking voice, " PLEASE don't kill me! " The sight of it all broke his heart, and as much as he wanted to smirk in satisfaction at giving someone who had the nerve to attack him what he deserved, he couldn't. He couldn't stand it.

" I won't! Never! Come on, man, I came here to get AWAY from the crying! " Scourge replied sadly, wondering if he should approach someone so easily frightened in that kind of jumpy state. Confused, Tails asked in curiosity with a whimpering voice, " Away? Huh? " barely able to talk in between the sobbing. Scourge explained nonchalantly looking irritated, " Oh, it's nothing, it's just that my wife's getting the baby to sleep and I don't wanna put up with all that noise. She's normally so quiet and well-behaved, though, it's just nights where she doesn't wanna humor us, " calling Fiona his wife by accident without realizing it.

The alternate Tails was dumbfounded at the idea that someone like him actually had a family of his own back home, and asked scared and creeped out, " So your way of dealing with the stress of a crying baby is to go and assassinate my father on a whim? " " He deserves it! Look, I'll show you he's psycho. It'll only take a couple seconds, " Scourge reasoned with him looking worried. He went up to the crying child and immediately got hit by one of his tails sent to his side in a panicked response, and the kid started standing up from the floor looking scared preparing for a fight again.

As would be expected from Sonic's more ill-tempered evil twin, being attacked like that when he was trying to be nice and reason with him made him blow his top, and Tails only had a few seconds to run away in a yellow blur going to a larger room with another escape pod, before Scourge punched him running up to him, sending him to the floor again. Some more punches and kicks were traded between the two, before the alternate Tails exclaimed in a panic, " OK, you win! Stop! "

Scourge was still angry as he held him by the neck above the floor not tight enough to cause pain, but hearing those words warned him that if he continued to attack him, he'd only prove he was no better than his bullies, that it wasn't just defending himself anymore, so he sighed in exasperation trying to calm himself down, dropped him, pulled out his zone-link generator and activated a portal with it looking resentful as the kid watched in confusion from the floor, getting up. Scourge then lifted him bridal style to a yelp from the kid, and explained as he went through the portal, " I'm provin' it to you, kid. "

They emerged from the portal in a meadow in another dimension under the night sky, and he quickly set him down ordering the scared kid, " Stay here! " and got his zone-link generator back out from his jacket pocket. He created a portal to a dark room where some Mobian villagers were being roboticized one by one, with Swatbots supervising, and told him, " See what your ' daddy ' is doing?! "

He then pointed to the screen of the zone-link generator explaining, " This is YOUR dimension's Robotnik, so don't even give me that. " The alternate Tails felt awkward, looking down at his red Eggman-styled suit as he said nervously, " I-I don't like seeing that either, but they're all criminals! That's how he punishes them! " Scourge said dismissively, " You bought that? " and then paused a little wondering if that could actually be true, since this was an alternate Robotnik and all, before saying to him, " Even if it's true, it's still disgusting of him to do! " Before the kid could ask him why a hardened callous arrogant criminal like him would even care about people being roboticized, Scourge continued bitterly,

" That almost happened to me with another Robotnik! When I didn't even do anything to him to deserve it! If anything, I should've been rewarded for bringing the superweapon pieces to him, but NO! Instead he pretended we never even had a deal, and threw me in a cell to be roboticized! I was perfectly willing to work with him for power and for fun, but NO! That's what Robotniks do! They trick you and betray! "

The two-tailed fox looked sad and unsettled at the compelling evidence, mumbling, " Maybe this one's different? " in denial, and Scourge said looking irritated, " How would YOU feel being turned into a robotic monstrosity, and LOSING all of your freedom to do whatever you want?! " outraged just at thinking that someone almost humiliated him with that kind of disrespectful mistreatment. Just as they saw some more people being thrown in roboticizers, he snapped and ran into the portal spindashing through all of the robots in the room in a rage, causing the alternate Tails to rush in after him not wanting to be left behind.

Immediately, the room was filled with roaring cheers and applause and overjoyed laughter from their green savior, and Scourge found it intoxicating the sheer amount of praise for himself, smiling so much looking satisfied and feeling so accomplished relishing in it that he forgot to try to make it look like a confident smirk. And while Scourge was enjoying the respect and was freeing people from roboticizers to get more of it, the two-tailed fox child couldn't ignore the fact that all those people cheering made his " father " look even more in the wrong, as they were treating Scourge like a hero. Still in denial and trying to fit things with the worldview he was raised with, he stammered, " I-I get why you're happy, but he's evil! He murdered Snively! He's gonna do the same thing to Robotnik! " getting the crowd's unbearable attention immediately as they recognized him.

" He did? "" Really? " a few people said as the crowd murmured amongst themselves, but to Scourge's relief, they all cheered again, believing that their points were proven. The confused fox asked, " Are any of you guys criminals? Did you do evil things? " and the crowd varied between shaking their heads at him and saying no, causing Scourge to say, " I told ya. " The child sighed sadly, realizing that his " father " really was roboticizing innocent people after all, and said,

" Okay, none of you deserve that fate then. B-But you're aware this guy's a criminal, aren't you? Just look at him, he has a leather jacket and fangs, for crying out loud! " still having a hard time accepting that Scourge could be in the right.

One of the people in the crowd, a deer Mobian, shrugged and said, " Whoever saves us! And he's gonna take down Robotnik! Of course we respect him! It figures Robotnik's favorite lackey wouldn't understand that. " Then someone beside him, a squirrel Mobian lady, asked, " What are you, anyway, a mutant he created in a lab to do his bidding? " Before Scourge could get really angry with her, she followed it up with, " Poor kid, " confusing him and the mutant in front of him.

Scourge put his arm around him making him jump and flinch, and tried to ignore that as he said, " No, he's just born that way. He's special, unlike the other boring people. " Tails smiled a little in appreciation at him standing up for him so casually, and admitted, " O-Okay, you're not so bad. But I still need a little more proof. Maybe I could convince him to stop this, and then it'd all be fine. "

Scourge sighed rolling his eyes at his albeit endearing naivety, and said, " First thing's first, I'm killin' all the robots in the building. _And_ out of it. Otherwise you'd all just get captured again and what would be the point? " He left in a green blur, and returned seconds later with a grin, gesturing for the crowd to start making their escape. With that, he created a portal, brought the alternate Tails with him into it, and created a portal back leading to a polluted wasteland that neither of them were happy at seeing. Wanting the extra effect, he brought the kid to just the outskirts of it whether he liked it or not, and the two immediately were disgusted by the stench of the place alone.

Scourge complained as the kid held his nose and breath, " Oh, man! Maybe that's why Kintobor was all naggy about garbage and pollution and stuff. It was never really my problem before, but this… It's not like I care, but I'd rather not have places like this left standing. Too bad spindashing around would probably just get nasty chemicals and stuff in me. See, kiddo? The guy's an idiot. Smartest guy in the world and still can't figure out how to get rid of toxic waste. And there's plenty more places like this. " The two-tailed fox looked devastated, unable to hide from the truth anymore, and after asking, " Can we leave now?! " and getting a positive response of, " Gladly! " the two ran away for a little while to a place that didn't stink to continue their conversation.

Scourge then resentfully created another portal bringing him through it and started using the zone-link generator to search for the kid's adoptive father, as the kid reflected sadly on what he just saw, and had smelled. " Okay, fine, you're right. He's not doing good for the world this way. But at least give me a chance to convince him to stop! If there's anyone he'd listen to, it's me! " the alternate Tails exclaimed sadly.

Scourge rolled his eyes and said in exasperation, " You're kidding yourself. Best case scenario, he'd lie and keep doing it anyways. " He finally found the Robotnik he was looking for, made the portal get officially created and put away the zone-link generator, and said seriously, " I need to END this, " pounding his fists together. He ran into the portal as the kid screamed, " No! " and finished the man off with a well-aimed spindash.

" NO! " the kid exclaimed again looking scared, and checked his pulse as Scourge glared at him in frustration, complaining, " I already proved to you he was evil, and you're still defending him? " Tails exclaimed starting to cry again, " You could've at least given me a chance! Now I have NO ONE! " Scourge quickly grabbed his wrists again to keep him from attacking him, and pushed him over on his back to take him down a peg, before yelling,

" No you don't! Go to the damn ' Freedom Fighters ' and apologize. Chances are, they'll take you in and forgive you just because of your age. " " N-No they wouldn't, " he replied sadly, terrified as he remembered how they used to glare at him and look uncomfortable from him. Standing up again, Scourge created another portal with his zone-link generator, saying, " At least TRY it, okay? Don't try to take his place, you don't want ME coming after ya. "

Getting vengeful from what he just did, the kid screamed furiously, tackling him into the portal. The two tumbled into the lab of another Robotnik and Snively while they were working on a giant death robot, and since Scourge knew he wasn't in a safe place at the time, he wanted the kid to stop attacking him as fast as possible, and eliminate the greatest threat to him before he could take advantage of him being distracted. As a result, he kicked Tails in the face from behind him into the wall and spindashed at the panicked man in front of him, making him lose his balance and fall to the floor, right on top of Snively, with predictable results.

Angry that the kid was keeping him too busy to fully enjoy his assassination, he simply grabbed the Robotnik with the black military jacket by the neck shouting, " I don't have TIME for this! " and finished him off, causing Tails to gasp in horror at it happening again. Before he could say anything, Scourge screamed at him standing over him,

" YOU need to get back to your own ZONE! I am NOT having the zone cops on my ass again! " After briefly being speechless from fear at the sheer volume of his furious but panicked shout, the alternate Tails asked curiously, " Again? B-But, I made the decision to come here! " " It wouldn't have happened if I didn't show up, " Scourge replied taking his zone-link generator out, and then shouted suddenly with a terrified tone of panic in his voice as he tried to cover it up with sheer volume,

" They'll FIND an EXCUSE! They're waiting for it! I'm lucky they haven't gone after me in the middle of the night with my wife and daughter, and kidnapped me in their prison AGAIN! " As the kid started feeling sorry for Scourge as he started to tremble, Scourge continued, " Fi thinks maybe they're turning a blind eye to me 'cause I'm solvin' the Robotnik problem, but who knows what'll happen if they get an excuse again?! "

He created a portal back to the Eggman-supporting Tails dimension, and started holding down an arrow button as he shouted, " I'm not going back to prison! I'm NEVER going back to prison! " He took a deep breath, and continued a little calmer, " At least my babe back home's in a stable situation now. She gets to live in a castle with Queen Sally and is basically a Freedom Fighter again, all because they respect me and her for icing Robotnik. Sure, she'd be upset, but other than that, she'd be fine without me. She at least has other people supporting her now. Don't need no job or nothin'. All thanks to me! "

Scourge then exclaimed, " I'm not getting separated from 'em. I'm not givin' 'em an excuse. I worked HARD on achieving what I got, damn it! " Then Tails asked him, " You have a partner in this ' Robotnik assassination ' stuff? " " Yeah, she even busted me outta prison, " Scourge replied, smiling from being proud of her accomplishment. " Wouldn't she be almost just as sought after by them as you? You're a criminal, they're not gonna care much about the family you made for yourself. Who would you rather they arrest? You or your wife and kid? " the two-tailed fox questioned, wanting to know if he really cared about his family.

" They're not TOUCHIN' 'em! I'd never let 'em take her and my little girl! I wouldn't LET them! Even if it came to that, I'd fight to th-wait, WIFE? " Scourge replied furiously as he got the portal to settle on the Freedom HQ of the kid's dimension. " Yeah, wife. Didn't you call that Fi your wife a couple times? " the kid pointed out in confusion, still reeling from the sweet revelation that he might defend them at risk to himself, although he wondered if he was just not thinking ahead and would've done it out of a protective impulse rather than truly accepting the sacrifice he might be making.

Scourge on the other hand, looked stunned for a few seconds at the knowledge that he had called Fiona his wife, and more than once, and wondered why he did that, before saying quietly with his hand on his chin, " Well, she is the mother of my _kid,_ I guess it just came out of me. Makes sense, it's only natural. Most moms are wives too. She ISN'T, though, yet. What am I _waiting_ for? "

After some brief consideration, he then said unhappily, " Oh, right. The crying. I'm not botherin' to make it official until I know for sure that I can take her having a kid. We're still going through our biggest ' test ' right now. Why tie the knot if I'm not sure yet? Though I don't WANT to leave her. She's the only girlfriend I've been fully happy with, occasional arguing aside. But just me calling her wife so easy… Huh. " Then he looked at the portal, was reminded of his goal, and pushed the kid in there screaming and closed the portal on his end before he could do anything to stop him.

Still able to see the alternate Tails through the portal on his own end, Scourge was relieved at the kid, after some brief hesitation, awkwardly knocking on the door of Freedom HQ, taking off his Eggman uniform and throwing it away sadly as the door was opened by an alternate version of Sonic. Scourge wondered what the Prime Sonic would say in response to what he did, irritated that he kept wondering this all the time like an obsession, and could practically hear his voice as he imagined him saying,

" _You did the right thing, Scourge. You could've killed him, and it would've fit right in with your plan, but you didn't. There might be hope for you yet._ " Scourge sighed and said in response, " Get outta my head, " uncomfortable and conflicted, but all the self-doubt and identity crisis faded for the moment when he saw the heartwarming sight of the crying Tails on his knees being given a hug, and smiled in contentment. He didn't care about doing the " right " thing for the sake of it, but he knew he was happy with what he did, and that made it the right decision to him.

A few hours passed, and when a knock was heard on the door to Freedom HQ, the alternate Tails that was raised by Robotnik jumped and yelped at seeing Scourge, and it took a second for him to notice that not only was he standing a few feet away from him at a safe distance, but he looked melancholic and depressed with his arms crossed, altogether looking completely harmless after the vicious way he acted earlier. Still, just seeing him reminded him of how much his bruises hurt, and Scourge felt even worse at seeing him rub his chest in pain at the sight of him.

Scourge admitted reluctantly, " I just wanted to say I-I'm, not happy that I hurt you. I wasn't comfortable with it, y'know. Hope you didn't have to, go to the hospital or nothin'. So there, okay? I'm _sorry_ I lost my temper! And that the fight happened at all. " The kid said with downcast eyes looking completely ashamed,

" Me, too. I-I started it. You were right, I shouldn't have been trying to stop you, although I wish you had been less cruel about it. Tied them up instead of… Thanks for apologizing, though, it means a lot. And it couldn't have been easy for you. " Scourge replied, " You have no idea. I'm just glad I didn't see a THIRD version of you get hurt or worse 'cause I didn't protect him! I came pretty close to that, but you're a tough kid, I'm glad ya toughed it out… So are we cool? Want a… "

He put his arms wide on either side of him outstretched in preparation for a hug, and the two-tailed fox happily embraced him with tears in his eyes, finding it incredibly sweet that even a callous destructive criminal like him would have good in him. The two of them both smiled in contentment at the warm soft hug, with Scourge being reminded of Miles and Frost and encouraged even more to be proud of what he did. With that, Scourge created a portal with his zone-link generator and said looking depressed at leaving him forever, " Well, g'bye. Shame I'm too busy to go visit ya. Good luck. "


	16. Chapter 15

Scourge's 4-year-old daughter stumbled on his zone-link generator after his favorite leather jacket had been taken out of the washer and dryer near it, and Fiona was fortunately able to prevent her from using it in time, running in a red and black blur and stopping near her to grab her, scooping her up in her arms. " Got'cha! Nice try. What were you doing with that? " she said with a sly smile, relieved at catching her. Phoebe, who had a short brown ponytail with a small purple bow and a black shirt with a purple skirt, said sadly, " I just wanted to play with it. I see Daddy using it to see other worlds before warping away, so I wanted to look at them from here, too. I'm curious. "

Fiona explained nervously as she took it away from her, " There's some things out there you just wouldn't wanna see, " not wanting her daughter to catch a glimpse of a terrible crime happening in another world and be upset, especially if she might panic and try to stop it by herself after that. Then she realized that the screen was set to Anti-Mobius, and she questioned, " Honey, do you know what dimension this is set to? " knowing she had made enough progress learning how to read from her that she would know the screen said that.

" Daddy's world. I was just pushing the arrow-shaped buttons, and I recognized the name of it from your stories, so then I wanted to take a look at the place, " she explained, disappointed at being caught. Fiona knew she was under very strict orders from Scourge to not let her daughter find out how much people hated Scourge on his own planet, and the sheer negative impact of his conquering it. Neither of them wanted her to be horrified at the revelation and become afraid of him at best.

She scolded with her listening unhappily understanding her reasoning, " Phoebe, we want you to stay away from this thing for your own good, okay? We don't want you thinking it's fine to go warp to another world without us. For all we know, it could end up getting broken or lost and you'd never get back home, or you'd go some place dangerous and get hurt! And Anti-Mobius is the most dangerous place of all, Phoebe. Promise us you won't go there, or even look at it! We've already told you enough about it. The good Robotnik, Scourge's old gang, the underwater echidna island- "

" Yeah, that place sounds cool! I wanna see! " Phoebe interrupted excitedly. Fiona looked really nervous, and said the half-truth, " I'm sorry, it's, it kind of got devastated a while ago. I honestly don't know if it's back to the way it was before that point. You wouldn't wanna see it. E-Earthquake. "

Phoebe sighed unhappily and said, " Okay, Mommy, I'll humor you. You don't want me getting hurt or nothin'. Maybe if you tell me more stories about your times in other worlds, it'll satisfy my curiosity, " and left the room, as Fiona held back a smile proud of how she was surprisingly articulate for her age, despite picking up on Scourge's speech patterns.

She then jumped looking surprised at leaving the room just to see Scourge hiding around the corner nervously, and when she handed him the teleporter, Scourge created a portal to Anti-Mobius, and said looking really worried, " She almost found out. One press of a button, and she would've seen this. " The portal showed them an effigy of Scourge being burned by a cheering crowd of echidnas in a city, with Anti-Knuckles among them with his arms crossed resentfully. Fiona commented awkwardly, " If she had seen this, we would've had a lot of explaining to do. " There was a brief silence, and finally Scourge said, " I'll be back, " and took off with the teleporter, making her worried and say, " Please don't do anything impulsive… "

Scourge started pressing the arrow buttons looking through the dimensions with the teleporter, with panic overwhelming him as he desperately searched for the final solution to his problem. He felt like he was on a time limit, that any minute now, his daughter would find it again and discover him for the villain he was back home. He had managed to convince her that he was worthy of being admired and gotten the respect he thought he deserved, but he couldn't imagine he could convince her that _he_ wasn't the jerk when his people were hating him enough to burn straw sculptures of him in festivals.

He didn't want to hide the zone-link teleporter in some tedious-to-find place every time he had to wash his jacket, so he was too stubborn to consider just putting it in a locked shelf, and he was too panicked to consider any other options, like giving it to Fiona to keep when his jacket was being washed. He would've gotten another leather jacket to put it in, but as he had put it, " Jackets with cool designs like THESE at the back are hard to find. "

With all of his stress and worry overwhelming him, his instincts took over and he fell back on old ways as the first and only thing on his mind was destruction, and eventually, he found a way. His portal showed him Eggman boasting to Snively about a doomsday device he had made from syphoning what was left of the Special Zone for power. It had a glass dome around it so that the buttons wouldn't be pressed by accident easily. Eggman boasted, " It's powerful enough to level an entire zone in the press of a button! " " But sire, nobody would believe you'd actually use it on your own zone, you're living in it! It'd just get you killed, and even if you survived, there'd be nothing left to rule! " Snively reasoned.

" I could threaten OTHER zones, though. This is the perfect bargaining chip to get the heroes to do whatever I want! Those softies will bend over backwards to stop me, even if I'm threatening a zone that's not even theirs. Worst case scenario, it'll be the perfect device to lure them to wherever I want, " Eggman bragged.

Suddenly, Scourge jumped on top of him shouting, " Nice try doofus! " after creating a portal to Mobius Prime, and while standing on top of his back with him collapsed to the floor, he stomped his wrist making Eggman scream in pain and took away the device, all as Snively watched in fear and confusion. He looked completely serious at first, only to smirk at holding the device, and kicked Snively into the wall at the speed of sound, injuring him, and boasted, " Thanks for the gift, moron! I won't snap your necks yet. I've got plenty of Robotniks left to go and I'm saving the best for last. "

Before anything else could happen, he gasped at seeing Sonic and Miles barge into the room through the air duct above him. In a knee-jerk reaction, he gasped and ran out of the room, and sped out of the base and city in general, being too panicked at the prospect of being returned to the No Zone to warp away as Sonic and Miles were running after him at around the same speed, taking him very seriously as a threat. Miles, with his dark-lensed glasses, would've looked especially intimidating because of them, if it weren't for his harmless-looking blue version of his old red shirt with an Acorn badge on it reminding him what had changed, and more importantly, the fact that Sonic the Hedgehog was angrily running just in front of him.

Sonic yelled out, " What are you doing with that thing, Scourge?! " disappointed in him for seeming to go back to his old plan of destroying any universe that didn't respect him. He wondered if he got fed up with the fact that some people were still afraid of and intimidated by and hated him, and gave up on taking down Robotniks because of that alone. Scourge wasn't the giving up type, though, which confused Sonic. Scourge replied angrily trying to hide that he was intimidated, " You should be thanking me, getting this thing outta his hands! Not to mention sparing him. I see ya still haven't killed him yet. Don't get your panties in a bunch, I'm not using it on _this_ world! "

After they ran into the Great Forest where there was the stress-inducing risk of them running into a tree getting injured, Sonic questioned, " THIS world? What world, then?! " and Miles exclaimed, " Damn it, just stop and let me talk to you! " getting Scourge's attention as he remembered Miles was with him. Miles then twitched his wrist and took control of the electricity in Scourge's nerves, forcing him to trip. He gasped in abject horror at Sonic catching up to him, while not intimidated by Miles at all since the worst he did to him was give him harmless shocks and send wind at him last time.

Reacting fast, he used his zone-link teleporter to create a portal to the FN Castle Acorn's courtyard and threw the doomsday device into it. Miles cursed, " _Damn_ _it!_ Should've thought of that! " ashamed at being considerate enough of him to not keep his body under his control after he hit the ground. Sonic resisted the urge to scold him for cursing since he knew it hurt his feelings not being accepted for who he was, and simply questioned Scourge, " What HAPPENED to you?! Why are you doing this?! "

Sonic thought furiously, " _I THOUGHT you CHANGED!_ " with his fists clenched and teeth gritted, and didn't let himself say it, because as Miles warned him, they were better off not letting Scourge know he was unintentionally making progress becoming less of a villain, when it would only encourage him to backpedal to be less like his rival.

Scourge got up from the ground, with Miles instinctively helping him up making him smile briefly, but he quickly returned to being on edge at seeing Sonic glaring at him like an enemy. He immediately remembered how menacing Sonic looked after he grabbed him by the collar, calling him a bully, when he always promised Miles he wasn't like that. He had felt helpless, like he was about to die, and there was nothing he could've done against him, as he was exhausted from powering down from his super form. For all he knew, Sonic would not go so easy on him next time.

He exclaimed to justify himself while looking serious with panic slipping out in his tone, " There's two zones out there that I'm better off without, Sonic! The No Zone and my Moebius! I don't want me and my family to be threatened by those zone cops on a whim! What if they try to arrest us in the middle of the night? What else am I supposed to do?! " The two of them looked stunned and Sonic asked, " Family? " in a quiet voice.

Scourge paused for a moment, regaining his composure, before saying nonchalantly calming down, " Oh, yeah, I never told you, did I? I'm a father now! My babe Fiona's at home with my kid. She's like 4 now. That's why she's not here, it's not a babysitting day. She's usually with me though, so Fi and I's lives haven't changed, our days are just as thrilling as ever! We just make sure to spend time with her when we have it free, even if that just means watching a movie on TV when she's there. "

There was a stunned silence as Sonic and Miles tried to process the idea that Scourge the Hedgehog and Fiona Fox were parents now, and they wondered if they should be worried for the kid. They would no doubt be a bad influence, Sonic could imagine Scourge would be harsh with the discipline, and Miles didn't know if they could be trusted to spend enough time with the kid when Scourge neglected him in favour of a girlfriend for most of their friendship.

Scourge replied resentfully with his arms crossed and his teleporter put away, " I figured you wouldn't be happy for me. That's why I didn't bother to tell ya. For your information, she's happy with us! We promised each other we wouldn't make the same mistakes our parents did. At least _she_ gets to have parents who give a damn. "

Miles, wishing he could meet her and wondering if he should think of the little girl as a little sister or niece or something since Scourge was his first parental figure, asked in confusion, " B-But why'd you, be a father NOW? You, you didn't cut and run? "

Scourge replied nonchalantly, " It was an accident. Fi made sure we'd only have one kid ever after that. Besides, she's the chick I've enjoyed the most, the only one who hasn't been a real pain. I know when I struck gold! And while I could try again with another Fiona, I-I'm, too, _used_ to the one I have, by now. I'd be stupid to give her up at this point. Only reason I'm not tying the knot is 'cause marriage is for old people. Though I consider it. " He muttered the last sentence under his breath with a curious expression. They could've sworn they saw a hint of him blushing at the end as he admitted how fond he had grown of Fiona, and even they found it a little bit sweet.

Sonic said, " Huh. Well, congrats! You beat me to it. " Scourge smiled, pleasantly surprised at what he said, and then smiled more proudly at realizing that he had actually beaten the Prime Sonic at a " competition " in some sense, even if unintentionally. Sonic asked nervously, " H-How is she, I mean, what's she like? " He never expected that his evil twin would become a father long before him, although he supposed with his Casanova reputation, he shouldn't have been so surprised.

" Pretty happy, carefree, loves her parents a lot and does what she's told. She kept the crying to a minimum as a baby, I was _very_ lucky on that one. She's an artist, y'know that? Very creative! Like, she'll draw things in her coloring book just to add to the pictures! Like say, a butterfly on a tree. A PURPLE tree, she doesn't let society tell her what color the trees should be! She'll use whatever the hell colors she wants! She's a free spirit, just like her daddy! " Scourge answered nonchalant at first and with a great big smile by the third sentence. The two of them found it heartwarming, uplifting even, that Scourge the Hedgehog was so proud of his little girl for even the most minor of reasons.

Miles found it especially encouraging that he wasn't calling her cute, since that would've implied he only liked her for being a cute little kid and wouldn't like her nearly as much later on, something that he'd always been worried about with the way Scourge was endeared to him almost entirely for his young age. It was a relief to him that he respected his daughter as a person, and not just as an adorable little girl to ruffle the hair of. Still, the idea that she might be being raised by him to have the wrong kind of morals was very concerning to Sonic. Miles couldn't care less, though.

Miles asked him, " Don't change the subject, why do you wanna destroy the No Zone? Are the zone cops bothering you? " Scourge admitted, " No. I haven't seen head or tail of 'em since Fiona busted me out. " He then exclaimed angrily in a panicked tone, " But I don't want them trying to go after my family and I when we least suspect it! You never know when they'll find an excuse! And I'm NOT going back to prison again! I'm never going back to prison! You don't know what it was LIKE in there! You think the bozos in those cells welcomed me with open arms?! They, I, those… th-they treated me like Miles!… "

Miles looked scared, and Scourge clarified looking into the distance with shrunken horrified eyes and a bitter expression, " They made my life _miserable_. Only difference was they weren't allowed killin' tools, and didn't constantly call me stuff like ' mutant. ' No offense, kid. They treated me like a common punk, ganging up on me every hour of the day, and I didn't have the powers to do anything about it. It was like TORTURE over there! " He said quietly as Sonic looked horrified, " I still have _nightmares_ of that place. " He then snapped at the concerned Sonic, " THAT'S what you did to me! " in a furious shout, and he punched him in the face.

Scourge quickly felt stress overwhelm him at the idea that he just got himself in serious trouble and risked himself getting sent back to prison from a fight with him, and Sonic noticed his shrunken pupils and unwillingness to do anything but stand there, his arms at his side, and took pity on him again. He was clearly terrified of him sending him back. Sonic thought, " _What did they DO to you, Scourge?_ " looking sad and uncomfortable.

He wasn't comfortable with the idea that his own twin had been bullied that viciously and vindictively for months on end because of him, to the point where it was emotionally scarring for him. He remembered how he felt when that control collar was put on Scourge's neck, how even back then, he felt uncomfortable, even if mostly just from the disturbing thought that it was a collar to shock Scourge and torture him. He knew Scourge had it coming for threatening to destroy universes out of spite, but he still didn't like what the prison did to him, and how the normally proud evil twin of his was genuinely afraid just at remembering any of it, despite returning to being just as powerful as before.

So instead of attacking him, Sonic admitted sadly after a tense silence, " Okay, I'll give you that one, I'll let it slide. I brought you there, after all. I didn't want you to cause trouble, and threaten Mobius again. You can't honestly blame me for wanting to protect my planet from you! But it sucks that, it stinks that, you were ganged up on like that. I can't make myself like it. " Scourge looked sad and uncomfortably avoided eye contact, his head down looking at the ground left and right, as he tried to let it sink in that Sonic was truly sorry. He was a nice enough guy that he actually felt bad for him, even though he had to admit he had a good point in what he did.

" Thanks, " he mumbled in response feeling awkward about hitting him earlier, and Sonic cocked an eyebrow and smiled a little bit. As Shadow, in the Great Forest on a mission, started to overhear, he hid behind some bushes and trees suspiciously listening in.

Miles then reassured him, " If the zone cops haven't bothered you or Fiona and your kid by this point, it's obvious they're too scared of you to try. Remember, it's not THEM who brought you to that zone last time. Maybe you don't have to worry about them anymore. " Then he shouted in a panicked tone, " But if you pull a stunt like THIS, OF COURSE they'll consider going after you! Trying to destroy their zone is like painting a giant target on your back! It's amazing nothing's come out of it already! "

Scourge couldn't ignore the fact that his reasoning made sense, and he remembered Fiona's reasoning that they were turning a blind eye to him thanks to him taking down all those Robotniks and improving the situation of the multiverse in the process. That still left the other zone, though, and his motivation for that would require more explanation.

Scourge said to Sonic, " Well, what about Moebius? You yourself think it's a twisted insane world! " and then snapped, " And it's the world that hates me the most! The world that respects me the least! " Miles felt bad for him at what him being unhappy about that instead of relishing in it was implying, while Sonic was directly reminded of when Scourge in his super form was threatening to keep stomping on planets until he'd find one that gave him respect. It frustrated Sonic even more here since he finally did earn respect, and was still threatening one of the three planets of people that didn't like him. He was acting selfish and entitled, to say the least.

Sonic retorted, " That's no excuse to take it out on innocent people! Not everyone there deserves to be destroyed! " Miles then reminded him looking sad, " Dr. Kintobor's there! That's one of the only good Robotniks! Don't you think he should be preserved for that alone? That's not fair to him, and to a LOT of people. Past experiences aside, I know there has to be some decent people over there. I just didn't get to see them because of my, extra appendage. Even if you do destroy it, then what? What if SHE FINDS OUT?! " Scourge gasped at the final sentence, and Miles said sadly, " This isn't you, Scourge, you're not like this! At least not the you I remember. " Scourge looked worried at seeing his sad expression, and sighed before explaining slowly,

" My daughter found my zone-link generator today. And while she said she wasn't gonna GO anywhere, she wanted to look at some other worlds, and if Fiona hadn't stopped her, she would've seen my home planet. And realized _just how much_ ' respect ' her daddy _has_ there. I don't want my own little girl to turn on me or be afraid of me all the time, for the stuff I did over there years ago. " The last sentence was spoken with such a melancholic and serious tone that it was almost a whisper. He then continued acting irritated, " I-It'd be ANNOYING! And depressing. I can't risk that. I can't risk all my work being undone and put to waste on her 'cause she sees a bunch of people hating on me! " Sonic and Miles looked sympathetic to him, finding it tearjerking, and could finally understand his desperation.

After a brief stunned silence, Sonic said sadly, " I get it, but, destroying a whole zone?! Aren't there other ways?! Couldn't you hide your teleporter better, put a child's lock like a password system on it, get it reprogrammed so that it can't select that zone as an option? " The final suggestion made Scourge look all wide-eyed and alert from it, and he said quietly, " That might work. Rotor could do that. " He realized him talking about the Rotor from the Film Noir dimension would confuse them, and then realized as he took out his teleporter that if he used that particular Rotor, it might pose a problem; his daughter might find out what he did from him slipping up and get even more curious and worried about what her parents were trying to hide. If he used the Prime Rotor, she'd never be able to find out.

As a result, he handed it to Sonic saying, " Do that, " and then glared at him saying suspiciously, " And don't let ANYTHING happen to it, okay? I _need_ that to get back to Fiona! " Some fear slipped out in his final sentence that they noticed, as he thought, " _She'd think I abandoned her!_ "

He continued, " And to do everything else I wanna do. You don't wanna be stuck with me on your planet! " and said with a confident smirk, " And I doubt your Robotnik wants that, either, " reminding the two of them that Eggman's life was on the line. Miles reassured Scourge, " He's not gonna double-cross you, I promise. He's not like that. Right, Sonic? " and Sonic admitted reluctantly, " Right. Good points, Green. "

With that, he and Miles ran away with his teleporter, which made Scourge jump and tense up at just the sight as he would hate the idea of Sonic breaking it on him, or getting it lost forever, robbing him of the life he made for himself. He wondered if Sonic would do that just to spite him, and then remembered the pity Sonic showed him and couldn't ignore the fact that he was too nice of a person to do that. He smiled in relief at that, thankful for that for once, and then he realized that he wouldn't be able to go back home until after the changes would be made to his teleporter. He dreaded coming back to Fiona after making her worry that he left her, felt stupid for not warping back home briefly to warn Fiona before realizing they wouldn't let him come home to the doomsday device anyways, and decided that the next time he'd come back, it'd be with a box of chocolates and jewelry to immediately reassure her.

He muttered, " What am I gonna do now? I'm stuck here, " with his hand on his head looking worried, and feeling like he had made a mistake. Wondering where he was going to sleep and have his meals and not looking forward to the heroes glaring at and insulting him annoyingly, he found himself hoping Eggman would try to threaten him with robots just so that he'd have something exciting to do. For all he knew, beating up criminals for stress relief like normal would only run the risk of getting Sonic outraged at him.

After those few seconds of thought where Shadow slowly approached him, he ran through the woods to catch up with Sonic, not noticing that Shadow had started running after him, through the woods and grassy field and into Freedom HQ's lab, where Rotor, Sonic and Tails' girlfriend Phoebe were looking over his teleporter on a bench near the globeposts, with Rotor right in the middle of working on it. Scourge said in a panic, " Wait, lemme pop by home first! I need to tell Fiona why I'm gone! " with his hand outstretched and a sympathetic scared expression getting their attention.

Rotor replied, " Sorry, but it's being worked on right now, so it can't really take you anywhere until we're done, " pointing to the hole in the zone-link generator showing wires through it. Scourge asked impatiently looking worried, " Well, how long's it gonna take? " Rotor answered, " Just the rest of the day, it's just one thing we're changing. " Scourge was unaware of it, but Sally had already made plans to briefly visit the zone he threw the doomsday device into to retrieve and dismantle it if it wasn't already, not trusting him not to use it when he came home.

Scourge sighed in exasperation with his arms crossed, and asked, " What am I gonna do to pass the time, then? " and thought, " _The blue spoilsport over here will try to stop me if I try anything he doesn't want, and while fighting him's fun, it might provoke him into doing the worst. What if he ends up getting a lucky break on me and then sends me to the No Zone with my own teleporter? Damn it, this is so uncool…_ "

Just then, Nicole sent a message to the lab appearing on a screen in front of them, and warned them, " Two of Eggman's Swatbot armies are coming! " Not knowing what else to do, Scourge said with a smirk, " Finally something exciting! I'll spindash them into nothin', and better than Sonic ever could! " and took off in a blur, causing Sonic to say, " We'll see! " and give chase with an amused smirk at having a rival. It wasn't long into the fight where Shadow showed up, taking down the army Sonic was fighting.

Several minutes later, the fight was over, with the three hedgehogs having only minor bruises to show from it, and Shadow was full of questions. Sonic complimented with a grin, " Great job, Scourge! " without thinking, all caught up in the aftermath of his satisfying victory. Scourge's satisfaction faded as a result, as he complained with his arms crossed, " On what? I did the exact same thing as you! Without even meaning to! "

Sonic asked, " What's wrong with that? You had fun! Isn't that all you care about in the end? " hoping he could convince him to relax. Scourge found he had a good point at the end, and it was nice to get a compliment, but still complained, " I guess, but it's boring to act too much like you. I'm a rebel! A free spirit! You wouldn't understand. You always do what people tell ya to. You've got no independence. "

Sonic told him, " I don't ALWAYS do that. There were a few times when I stood up for what I believed in and did what I wanted anyways! First off, when Eggman replaced my own zone's Robotnik, the king didn't want me going up to those satellites to confront him, even though a whole village of people had been kidnapped, but I did anyways, and saved my mom and dad in the process! " smiling in pride at the end. " So you rebelled? Cool! I didn't think you had it in ya, " Scourge replied with a grin, genuinely impressed.

Shadow stared at the sight in confusion, a little disturbed at the sight of it. He didn't like the idea that Sonic's evil twin was impressed with him, acting like a mentor proud of his student. If only he didn't have a sore throat from getting punched by a robot, he would've said something to interject, instead of only speaking when it seemed necessary.

Sonic then said, " Not to mention the Council of Acorns told me I wasn't allowed to go try to oust you and your gang from my base, but I went there anyways. " Scourge responded happily, " Really? Wow! Look at you! You might have a little backbone after all! " Sonic rolled his eyes at the backhanded compliment, appreciated that he was at least taking back his insult on him from when he took Fiona away from him, and said with an encouraging smile,

" See, being a hero doesn't mean you can't be independent! I do what my friends say 'cause they have smart ideas, like Sally. She's a good leader, so I listen to her. Sometimes I'm reluctant, but it all turns out great in the end. Come on, you can't tell me you never did the same thing with your own dudes. You worked for Robo-Robotnik once, didn't you? "

Scourge said defensively as Shadow looked at him in shock and anger, " That was a long time ago! I didn't know he'd betray me. I didn't even know roboticization existed yet when he approached me! He promised me a ton, after my old gang walked out on me and I was left with nothing. So I humoured him. I probably wouldn't have let him stick around for long after I got what I wanted. Same thing goes with some other various Robotniks, they all tried to betray me in the end! But that was the past, when I was inexperienced with the kind of asshats like him! Now I don't trust any Robotnik as far as I can throw him. "

He then admitted with downcast eyes, " You are right, though, I've done what other people told me to before. Alicia, mostly, " and smirked saying, " I just prefer to make my own decisions, and do things MY way! " Tails then ran up to them in a yellow blur and stopped, looking apprehensive. Fortunately, everything had been explained to him by Nicole along with Sally, so he didn't immediately have a million questions.

Scourge then looked annoyed and asked with his arms crossed, " Now is he gonna send any more of these robots, or am I gonna be stuck with nothin' to do? " Shadow and Sonic both looked at each other in response to that. Shadow didn't trust him in New Mobotropolis or the base, especially when he was so bored and would be itching to cause trouble because of it, but it might be better to keep him close by to keep an eye on him. Sonic asked with an awkward smile, " Wanna watch a movie with me? " " Is it an action movie? " Scourge questioned reluctantly, getting a nod in response.

" Well, if it isn't Mr. I Don't Need You! " Sleuth suddenly shouted from the bushes nearby, alerting everyone's attention to the fact that the Destructix had shown up. Scourge said dismissively, " Well I don't! You'd just be excess baggage, I can kill every Robotnik faster myself. You'd just complain about me making out and want stuff to do. Besides, you're all jerks anyways, I know none of you liked me. " None of them looked too pleased.

Predator Hawk yelled, " We busted you outta prison and that was the thanks we got! " Scourge winced for a split-second before saying resentfully shouting the first sentence, " Well maybe if you were all so quick to lose respect for me, you shoulda considered being separated from me as its own reward! Since you hate me so damn much. Now you got a whole dimension separating us normally. You're welcome! But I guess that's not enough for ya, is it? "

A few of the Destructix agreed with his reasoning, seeing not having to be around the narcissistic hedgehog as a blessing, but the rest of them continued to look annoyed at once again being ditched like nothing. He glared at Lightning Lynx, and said in annoyance, " I even took out Commanding Storm for you last year! But I bet you're still against me, aren't ya? " Lynx looked shocked.

Indeed, Scourge had; he had gone to the Prime Dragon Kingdom to find her for a fight, and when he realized who she was, his response was to say in tranquil fury, " Wait, you're Commanding Storm? " and punch her starting a fight, shouting, " This is for Lightning Lynx! " While he never cared that much about him, he still hated her for what she did, and didn't need much of an excuse to pick a fight.

However, this wasn't enough to get Lightning Lynx to side with him, as he ended up just looking depressed and feeling empty inside, and admitted to him, " I didn't really want her dead. I wanted her to be with me... " finally admitting it to himself when Scourge had gotten the revenge he thought he wanted.

Drago asked, " Where's your girlfriend? You ditch her too? " Scourge snapped at him, " NO! For your information, she's waiting for me in a castle with my _daughter!_ That's right! I got a family already, and that's already more success in life than any of you! " The Destructix all looked surprised at learning that, and then a few of them stopped looking that way.

Sergeant Simian said, " I guess we shouldn't have been so surprised. You were always all over her, you'd never want to give THAT up. And as for the daughter thing? It was an accident, wasn't it? " He smirked mockingly at the end to demean his success, and Scourge furiously punched him in the face, exclaiming, " She's STILL worth a lot more than you! " addressing every one of the Destructix.

Then Lightning Lynx kicked Tails from behind getting their attention, and almost knocked out Tails from a hit in the head with a rock when he was lying on the ground. Sonic called out in fear, " Tails! " and the sight of a two-tailed fox kid being hurt like that again set Scourge off like nothing else. He punched L. Lynx shouting protectively, " Not this time! NEVER again! " sending him flying.

As Shadow, Sonic and Tails all wondered what exactly he meant by that, with Shadow being able to relate, a fight broke out, with Sonic, Scourge and Shadow all creating tornadoes with their super speed running around in a circle, and Tails moving his arms around to send gale force winds out like Miles had taught him. Predictably, this sent the Destructix flying and led to their defeat, as they all fell from a considerable height and fell unconscious with some broken bones in the process, getting the loss that would be expected from them all challenging a bunch of superpowered Mobians. However, Scourge soon tried to move ahead with a smirk of revenge, and Tails quickly called out, " NO, don't! "

After Scourge bounce-attacked Sleuth in the back a few times before Tails said that, he asked in annoyance, " What's it to you? They all deserve it! And didn't Sleuth betray the Freedom Fighters?! Putting 'em in prison'll just let 'em break out and keep at it, angrier than before! " cringing at mentioning prison. As Shadow remembered when he tried to kill Eggman at a pier and realized he could relate to his attitude, Sonic spindashed at him to get him to stop attacking somehow not hurting him with his spines, possibly since Scourge was safe in ball form at the time.

After the two tumbled onto the ground, Shadow, finally deciding to speak, reasoned with him, " If you want them to suffer, isn't prison the perfect way? It's humiliation! You of all people should know what a punishment that is. Killing them would be a mercy in comparison! And I don't expect mercy out of you. Right? " hoping he could manipulate him by appealing to his sadism.

Scourge stood up growling a little before admitting reluctantly, " True, " surprising everyone. After a brief stunned silence, Sonic quickly made sure to say something else to reason with him, saying sadly, " You want our help with your teleporter, you gotta behave! At least a LITTLE, okay? No wasting time bothering my city or, worst of all, killin' people. " Scourge glared at him resentfully with his fists clenched at being told what to do, thinking, " _How DARE you!_ " and Sonic added nervously and awkwardly,

" You'll do it anyways after we're done, maybe you'll return here to finish off the Destructix years from now. You can do it anytime, AND anywhere. Doesn't need to be here and now. Can't you relax for a few hours and take a break? "

Sonic smiled with a grin and said, " I've got a great action movie at home! The Fast and the Furious! And my parents aren't home, they're busy. " Scourge relaxed at learning that and said, " So empty house? Good, less annoying judging for me. Fine. " He then thought about how with Detective Sonic, he would end up watching action movies with him in the evenings all the time no big deal, although he always had Fiona and Phoebe at his side. He missed them already.

Shadow questioned, " Wait! What did you mean by ' Never again? ' When you saved Tails! " He would've asked what kind of business the heroes had with Scourge's teleporter, but he figured he could get the answers from them later. Scourge looked awkward, as Tails looked at him in a mixture of sadness and scared curiosity, while Sonic was more interested. He sighed, not wanting to talk about it and hoping he wouldn't make it too obvious how it made him feel, and tried to put on an annoyed and irritated expression and tone to cover it up, explaining,

" It's just that some alternate versions of Miles got hurt a couple times 'cause I wasn't lookin' at 'em. A few of them got worse than hurt. Like, well, ' zapped by lightning from a female Robotnik ' worse. _All_ 'cause I went into the damn portal a split-second too early! Fi and I do a countdown now to stop that. " His voice cracked a little from stress at the first word of his second to last sentence, his tone being more upset and trying to hide it through his angry and bitter act clenching his fists all the while. Tails looked horrified with his hands over his mouth, while Sonic, similarly upset, remembered that he saw that female Robotnik before, and she was obviously long gone because of Scourge, though since he knew that she killed an alternate version of his little buddy, he couldn't muster up much sympathy.

Then Scourge continued with difficulty acting bitter with a far-away look in his eyes, " Sonia and Manic got a Tails of their own, and he got hit in the head by a Swatbot when I wasn't lookin'! I destroyed it in a rage, along with every other robot, but the kid had to go to the hospital. He's fine now, though, but I'll never forget that. Most of the time when I see another Tails, he's fine, but every so often there's a problem, and it's frustrating as all hell when I of all people can't keep it from happening. The last time I saw one near a Robotnik, some alternate members of the Destructix grabbed him while I was busy and threw him through a goddamn _window,_ so you can't BLAME me for getting enraged with these damn idiots! "

He looked sad briefly as he continued, " I-It's just 'cause they remind me of Miles! He's the first person who ever cared about me at all, you can't blame me when I see other kids lookin' like the same one I swore to protect. Well, I said I'd be his bodyguard, I mean. ' Swore to protect, ' sounds so cheesy, " embarrassed at the end from coming off as more honorable and heroic than he was known as. There was clear stress and fear in his tone when he mentioned the last time an alternate Tails had been killed around him, all because he wasn't fast enough.

Scourge could tell by Sonic and Tails smiling warmly at him that they found it sweet, him wanting to protect someone weaker for once to the point of feeling terrible from failing at it, and after recognizing that Sonic was clearly proud of him, he was torn between being incredibly happy and uncomfortable since it was incompatible with his bad boy image. As a result, his eyes showed awkward self-conscious worry and embarrassment, while he couldn't help but smile.

Shadow responded awkwardly looking sympathetic to him, " Actually, I can relate! A girl named Hope reminds of my old friend Maria, and seeing her life being threatened like hers was is unbearable, and makes me defend her with all of my power until she's safe. I know what it's like to want to protect someone because they remind you of someone else, who I personally failed to protect. " He looked ashamed at the end. Scourge asked after a confused silence, " Who? " not knowing who either of those people were. Then he said casually and informally, " Not to dismiss anythin' you said, at least someone knows what's it's like. "

Tails explained on Shadow's behalf who Maria and Hope were and Shadow's history with the former, and Scourge's response, after looking at him stunned from hearing about Maria's death, was, " Well, uh, THAT sucks. If she's nice, like he said. " However, he then went on to comment, " You didn't know her for as long as I knew Miles, though. I raised the kid, I spent an entire year with him with just the two of us! He spent half of his childhood with me. How can that compare to a girl ya only knew for like a minute? "

Shadow looked annoyed and Tails quickly said, " He still knew her for his entire life up to that point! It would still feel the same. " Shadow angrily pointed out, " It wasn't the real Miles that suffered those fates. He's happier than ever! Maria isn't! "

Scourge replied seriously with a lighthearted first sentence, " If she's in heaven she is! Besides, it wasn't your fault you were trapped in a pod and couldn't do anything. I could've DONE something DIFFERENT, and things would've been fine! You have no reason to blame yourself, you don't know what it's really like! I could've been faster, or paid more attention to my surroundings! You were just trapped in a pod. " Shadow was quiet looking unhappy, realizing he had a good point and appreciating that he was actually reassuring him about his own past.

Scourge continued, " All I'm sayin' is, one bad memory isn't enough to make an ' angsty past. ' Just seeing something bad happen to someone else once doesn't compare to years of bullying or six months in prison. One bad day isn't traumatizing like YEARS of abuse. Miles had it a lot worse than you did, and it shows. Don't tell anyone I told ya that. "

Shadow growled with his arms crossed, irritated at his problem being downplayed and dismissed, although he knew he was right that others had suffered worse than he had. Sonic then said quietly in annoyance walking away, " Come on, Scourge, let's go before ya really tick him off. " Scourge asked with a shrug, " What? I'm just sayin', " and followed him as they ran off together, with Tails quickly deciding to follow behind them.

When they got to Sonic's house, Miles, wanting to spend time with them, sat on the couch with them as Sonic popped the movie in and Tails got some popcorn ready. Miles stared at him looking sad as Scourge sat on the other end of the couch with his arms crossed, and felt bad for him. He knew what it was like to be disliked and not accepted by the other people around him, to be looked at by people and only remind them of the evil things he did in the past, forced or not.

Wanting to make him feel more welcome, Miles asked Sonic timidly in a whisper, " Is it okay if I, uh, sit beside him and, y'know, like with Alicia? He's all alone and not really wanted here. Just once for old time's sake? " Sonic reluctantly agreed after some hesitation, " Alright, " understanding, and Miles proceeded to put his head on Scourge's chest and lap nestling up to him ready to take a nap, with Sonic putting the blankets over him. Scourge smiled in contentment at that, putting his left arm on Miles' back, and finally began to relax, no longer caring that much that he wasn't messing with Sonic.

The blue hedgehog himself on the other hand, smiled in amusement with his arms behind his head thinking, " _If I told my younger self I'd be sittin' here watchin' a movie with Scourge the Hedgehog and the Anti-Tails as a Freedom Fighter today, he'd have never believed it._ "

Phoebe then walked into the house, wanting to go see Tails, and after looking surprised at seeing Scourge with Miles sleeping with his head on his chest, she sat down beside Tails and let him put his arm around her holding her close. Scourge looked over at her, the red fox barely a teenager with a purple and pink short dress and rose-tinted glasses, and smiled. Tails asked him with jealousy in his tone, " What are you looking at? " Scourge then explained a little bashfully, " Just wondering if that's what my daughter will look like in 10 years. Pheebs always loved dresses. "

Everyone looked wide-eyed and surprised at hearing the final sentence, and Phoebe said looking stunned, " Pheebs? That's short for my name! You… you named your daughter after me? " After a brief silence where she slowly started to smile, Scourge said nonchalantly, " Well, duh! Actually it was Fiona's idea. She saw a younger version of her, looking at you, so when she saw her kid for the first time, looking like a younger version of her, ' no other name came to mind! ' " Phoebe had the biggest smile on her face after that, and said feeling honoured, " Wow! That makes me SO, happy! It's like you've got a little baby me or something! That's so sweet of her! Thank you! C-Can ya thank her for me? "

Scourge replied nonchalantly with a smile, " I'll pass the message along. She thought about askin' for permission, but it would've been too awkward if some other Freedom Fighter happened to see her here, especially Sally. 'Sides, she and I are free spirits, we don't ask for permission to do what's fun. "

Everyone found it a little heartwarming, with Sonic wondering if this means he should consider Scourge's daughter to be like the Moebian equivalent to Tails' girlfriend then, born on Moebius or not, and Tails smiled nervously hoping his girlfriend wouldn't admire Scourge's entitled attitude too much. He didn't want to discourage her from it right in front of him and ruin the jovial, friendly mood between Scourge and them for once.


	17. Chapter 16

When the movie had just ended and the TV was switched back to showing TV, Sonic's parents came home to Scourge's dismay, and naturally were pretty alarmed at seeing Scourge sitting on their sofa with Miles cuddled up to him like it was normal. As Scourge looked annoyed staring at the TV ignoring them, Sonic knew he had to explain things as quick as possible, so he jumped up from the sofa alarmed and said, " Mom, Dad! Relax! He's just here for a little bit longer, he'll be gone by tomorrow. Rotor's working on his zone teleporter to remove Anti-Mobius as an option from it. He doesn't want his daughter to get her hands on it and see how much people hate him there. "

Jules exclaimed in surprise, " Daughter? " as Sonic's mother looked worried. Phoebe, who was still on the couch sitting between Tails and Scourge, explained, " Yeah, Fiona had her 4 years ago, apparently. She even named her after me! " having a great big smile with her hands clasped together at the final sentence. Still uncomfortable and shaky from Sonic's evil twin being around, especially considering what Patch had done to Antoine's father, Bernie asked, " Wh-What's she like? " trying to ask normal questions to appear nonchalant and calm down.

As Tails and Sonic wished they could talk so freely like Phoebe as if this wasn't an awkward situation, Phoebe continued with a smile, " She's cheerful, and quite the artist! And he said I look like her! Except older. " Scourge said with a friendly smile despite the exasperation, " Okay, alright, that's enough. They get the picture, " a little embarrassed at how Phoebe was making him look like a softie for being reminded of his daughter by her so easily.

Sonic's mother said in confusion to him, " So, you've just been watching a movie with my son? The whole time? " confused that he hadn't really done anything evil on that planet that time. Scourge, with his arms behind his head trying to look relaxed and casual as normal, responded, " Yeah, as weird as it is. We have the same taste in movies, I-I mean, we just happen to both like action movies, that's all. I'm an action-lovin' thrill-seeking guy, it's not just because I'm a Sonic. Also, I stopped Robuttnik from threatening to destroy some zones with a doodad of his, you're _welcome_. " He couldn't resist mentioning his accomplishment at the end with a proud smirk until the end, annoyed at not being appreciated for it and being stared at with confused suspicion instead. As Sonic facepalmed at him opening up a whole can of worms, Bernie said slowly, " You DID? " baffled and wary.

Scourge boasted casually with a smile, " Yeah, and literally all I had to do was use my zone teleporter to warp to him. Landed on his back and took it! Also threw Snively against the wall. He's probably in a body cast now from what I did to him, " saying the final sentence with a harmless-sounding laugh. Everyone cringed at hearing that, and Scourge then continued to dig himself deeper by admitting, all the while not really looking at her and just staring ahead at the TV as it played commercials, " At first I came here to get rid of my zone entirely, not to mention the No Zone so I wouldn't ever get sent BACK to that hellhole, but Miles convinced me it wasn't necessary. So we found another way. "

Bernie covered her mouth in shock at hearing an alternate version of her son casually say that he was going to destroy two entire zones of people, even if he did change his mind, while Jules glared with his arms crossed at him in disapproval. Noticing it out of the corner of his eye and feeling the tension of the silence in the room, Scourge said unhappily, " What? I was desperate! I wouldn't do it again! " trying to be dismissive and joking at the end.

He went back to acting casual right after that. If there was any anxiety and discomfort in him from being judged and feared by everyone around him, he didn't show it, only looking annoyed from it with his expression at the worst of times. He said as if they weren't even there, " Now all I care about is trying to find stuff to do. Not to mention Fiona worrying that I'm not back yet. I didn't tell her why I left, only that I'd be back. I hope she's not blowing it all out of proportion. "

Sonic quickly reassured his parents with a nervous smile, " Don't worry, guys, I'm keepin' him entertained, he's not doin' anything wrong. " Jules thought, " _Thank goodness for our TV,_ " which was a common feeling among the others in the room, and then asked him looking serious and unintimidated just like before, " So how are you doing raising her? I was nervous starting out, myself, " moving more in front of him so he was just to the right of the TV, making it harder for him to avoid eye contact with his judgemental and creeped out expression.

Scourge, continuing to talk like it was no big deal to look cool instead of awkward, said with his arms crossed, " I'm nice to her. I ruffle her hair and stuff. Fiona does most of the work, of course. She changed her diapers, got her to sleep at night, she dressed her when she was little and gives her baths. She taught her how to brush her hair and teeth, and even taught her how to read! She _really_ got into the whole ' mom ' thing, it's pretty endearing! Never thought she had that kind of ' nurturing ' side to her. I just saw her being loving in a girlfriend sense. " He had an actually likable smile as he talked about Fiona, which was quite a sight to Sonic's parents, who used to wonder if he actually liked Fiona at all. Here, he looked almost lovestruck just chatting about her, about the same way Sonic used to look when talking about Sally.

He looked sad muttering with his head hung low and his arms crossed, " It's nice to see that kind of behavior up close. She _sure_ is lucky. " This caused Jules and Bernie to wonder in concern if his own mother wasn't loving enough, since he found Fiona merely being attached to her daughter and doing the basic things expected of any mother to be a nice novelty. Tails was stunned at learning what a great mom Fiona Fox turned out to be, seeing undeniable proof that she still had good in her. Her only problem was being a bad influence. Scourge quickly went back to acting as expected saying with a smirk, " The kid really admires me, and her, but mostly me. "

As Bernie slowly walked out of the living room, continuing to listen in from around the corner of the wall, Phoebe asked, " How come? " Scourge knew she didn't mean anything insulting by it, considering her naïve tendency to just ask questions and point out things others wouldn't, just like his daughter when she was younger, so he didn't get offended and simply answered,

" She says I'm _fearless, gutsy_ and super cool being able to run fast and spindash through robots every day, and she admires my whole Robotnik eliminating mission, and how I get to see so many different zones. Every night, me or Fi tell her stories about our lives before her as bedtime stories, like Fiona tells her all about her exciting time as a treasure hunter. " He emphasized the part where he was called brave to rub it in Jules' face that his daughter didn't think he was a coward.

" And do you tell her about your _exciting_ time as a delinquent back home? " Jules questioned sarcastically. Scourge stopped smiling and looked uncomfortable, and said, " Well, uh, I told her the basics. Me and Miles beat up criminals. Like drug dealers and dudes threatening chicks and stuff. Then I met Alicia and she brought us into her gang of crime-punishing soldiers, which was really just an excuse to feel in charge of something for once and rebel against her corrupt dad. And he DEFINED corrupt, worst king ever from what I heard, so we threw him into the Zone of Silence where he belonged! She loved hearing that I overthrew a dictator like that! The dude had 12 yachts, one of them for cheating on his wife. Then I told her we beat up some more criminals and then eventually I came here and met Fiona. "

Tails asked him trying to hide his irritation and unhappiness just at remembering the result, " Did you tell her the whole story of HOW you got her dating you? " Scourge's cheery act faltered again, and he said, " Most of it. I saw Sonic's life had things to enjoy mine didn't, and then I met Fiona, and when he took back his life, she was the one girl who made a lasting impression on me, so I eventually wanted to see her again. Somehow, I got lucky enough to convince her to hang out with me and have fun on the wild side! It just so happened that she had to leave the Freedom Fighters to be with me. Even if she didn't leave herself, you just know Sally would've kicked her out just for dating me. She _wanted_ to do _both,_ since _both_ were _fun,_ and she hates Robotnik with a fiery passion and rebelling against him's great! But I took up too much of her time, and people got wise. She told her, ' I had to choose between my friends and love, so I chose love, and that's how _you_ were born! ' "

Jules thought with his arms crossed, " _That's a pretty sugar-coated version of it,_ " as Tails and Phoebe reacted with surprise and astonishment at the fact that Fiona never stopped enjoying being a hero. Sonic remembered her disappearances when he was dating her, making her miss Tails reuniting with his parents among other things, and realized that Scourge was right; she didn't have time to do both. Then he remembered that she said she tried being a hero and stuck with it for him, and it finally dawned on him that she had been lying, for the sake of looking cool. He wondered if it was all to impress Scourge by looking as unheroic as possible, instead of showing any reluctance depressing him.

Jules questioned, " What did she say when you told her all about your time ' fighting against ' Dr. Kintobor? " secretly thankful that he was getting away with talking with him for so long and having an actual conversation with him. The last time, Scourge wasn't having any of it and just fell back on feeble attempts at death threats and intimidation as a " response " to all of his points. Everyone, aside from Phoebe who took it for granted, was rather impressed at all the information he was giving them as if it was nothing to him. Sonic wondered if he just wanted someone to talk to about all of that. Scourge looked awkward and admitted,

" I didn't. When I told her who he was and what he was all about, she admired him and said she wanted to _meet_ him! That would've been nothin' but trouble. No way I could rely on him not to turn her against me. She wouldn't understand why I was his enemy in the first place. She did nothing but compliment him, on being nice and a tree hugger and caring about other people than himself, and, well, I couldn't really think of any good insults explaining my point. A-At the TIME, I mean. " He uncomfortably avoided eye contact, lying at the final sentence, implying that he was having a very hard time justifying it to himself, especially now that better targets for his stress and anger were available to him. He sighed in irritation and complained venting,

" It's just frustrating. With Robotnik, I can give all sorts of reasons for why she should hate him and why I target him like I do. She was basically raised to hate him! Fiona insisted on it. She thinks he's the ultimate evil, and that I'm the valiant knight who races to slay the evil dragons! But with Kintobor, nothing really comes to mind. I was just stressed out and annoyed and his Sweepbots made nice crunching sounds when I smashed them. But Swatbots are way _better_ to destroy. At least they fire lasers and stuff to give a challenge! All Kintobor did was keep up force fields and IGNORE me, " glancing at Jules with the final few words. He looked especially resentful with his arms crossed and thought, " _Ignore me. Just like my father._ "

He realized what he was looking like when he saw Sonic and Tails smiling warmly at him, and said hurriedly, " D-Don't get me wrong, I'm not goin' soft or nothin', I just seen that over the years, Kintobor was the lamest enemy ever for me. Everyone else gives me a better challenge and a satisfying time. He just happened to be there. Acted like he was nice when he didn't do nothin' for me, didn't improve my situation, and always acted uncomfortable around me like I was the bad guy. I-I am, of course, but it was still annoying. He said I was making nothing but mistakes. Like I haven't heard THAT before! "

He glowered with his arms crossed, unconsciously looking at Jules right when he said that final sentence, and much to his discomfort, he felt his eyes start to feel watery and his face heat up a little as he looked more depressed than angry. He thought angrily, " _Not now! Not in front of them!_ " Miles sleeping on his chest was the only thing comforting him at the moment, as he had a warm soft bundle of fur nestled up to him, the kid having taken off his shirt feeling hot. He could feel the kid's breathing and heartbeat soothing him slightly from the calm predictability.

From seeing the way that he was acting, Jules wisely decided not to ask him who he heard that before from, as Bernie slowly went back into the room standing just to the left of the TV to see Scourge's expression, just left enough that she was out of his sight. She felt terrible seeing him like that. Tails, Sonic and Phoebe didn't enjoy it either. Trying to change the subject, Jules asked, " So how do you and Fiona punish her when she's, when she does things you don't want? Like not finish all her vegetables. "

Scourge looked confused, saying, " Punish? Well, uh, she's pretty well-behaved most of the time. Fiona usually gets her to do what she's told through guilt trips. She's remarkably good at that. All she needs to do is remind her she wants to keep her parents' approval and doesn't wanna disappoint 'em. It's easy when a kid LIKES their mom and pop, apparently, we got lucky she appreciates us so much. But when we do have to punish her, like when she drew a butterfly on the kitchen wall with markers, well, I dunno, I tell her to go stare at the wall or somethin'? Maybe help out with the chores, she knows what to do. Yeah, usually it's that. We don't really have a base framework for this sorta thing, and we don't wanna ask anyone else for advice either, being independent free-thinkers and all. We wanna do things our way! Problem is, that required figuring out what our way WAS, " showing humility for once.

Not failing to realize how unusual it was that he was having a conversation with Scourge the Hedgehog over parenting, Jules questioned for the sake of the conversation, " Well, how did your own parents punish you? " mostly used to the situation he was in by that point as Sonic, Tails and Bernie stared scared at how close to him he happened to be standing. Scourge looked awkward again and explained dodging the question,

" Uh, well _Fiona_ never HAD parents. I, I thought Miles woulda _told_ ya about _that_. It was one of the things I told him he had in common with her when I introduced the two properly. They were both homeless and their parents ditched 'em. I was hopin' they'd click, relating to each other, but he never even gave her a chance, because she didn't suffer as much as he did. When she first came into the picture, we were, _she_ was kind of _panicking_ from day 1, because we never had any sort of foundation for raisin' a kid! My girl pretty much HAD to ask for advice on stuff like changin' diapers, and making the baby formula for B-uh, babysitters. " He had to stop himself from saying, " Bunnie, " and revealing that he and Fiona were actually spending a great deal of time with some Freedom Fighters, leaving them wondering why he stuttered. He thought, " _Sonic would never let me live that down._ "

He relaxed and smiled as he continued, " Fi and I just base it off the way I raised Miles, and how Sonic treats Tails. It's worked so far! Now I gots me a wife and kid and I feel more successful than I _ever_ been! Way more than those generic thugs I called the Destructix, " smirking proudly at the end.

" Wife?! " Tails responded all wide-eyed and stunned, and immediately Scourge was embarrassed and facepalmed, complaining, " Oh, right. NO, she's not my wife, " muttering, " not yet anyway, " and explained irritated, " I gotta, it's just that it comes out so naturally sayin' ' my wife and kid. ' ' My girlfriend and kid ' just doesn't roll off the tongue as well. Plus she's raisin' my daughter, and girlfriends don't do that. She's, _more,_ she's like at an upgraded status now. I just always thought that marriage was for old people, middle-aged men and stuff. I'm still young! "

Phoebe pointed out, " Antoine and Bunnie got married at like 18! It's not unheard of, " and Tails looked unhappy and slightly annoyed at that. Jules asked, " You didn't fully answer my question. How'd YOUR parents punish you? "

Scourge looked unhappy, and lied with a raised voice, " He _didn't!_ They didn't! I-I, I don't remember! " There was an uncomfortable silence as he avoided looking at anyone in the room, and Bernie covered her mouth with her hands again holding back a gasp as Scourge felt his face heat up and his eyes start to water again, blinking to try to stall it off. Everyone stared at him with a mixture of sadness and fear for him, and Phoebe was the one to put her hand on his shoulder and ask, " What's wrong? " not understanding why nobody else was doing so. Scourge moved a little away from her still sitting on the couch to get her to remove her hand, wondering if letting her keep it up would've made Fiona jealous, and promptly regretted doing that because he had appreciated the comforting gesture, his shoulders sinking with his head down low.

" Ugh, it's, just, damn it, well, he DID, " Scourge admitted nervously, and Jules and Bernie started to really dread what they might be prying out of him, especially after what they heard about the kind of abuse _Tails'_ evil twin had gone through. He closed his eyes as Jules questioned, " Harshly? " with growing anger in his tone that Scourge didn't recognize as being anger against Anti-Jules, and instead thought was anger at him, supporting the harshness.

Scourge remembered when he first met Jules, and how he learned from him that if he so much as hurt him, Sonic would be _very_ upset with him. He couldn't afford to let his anger get out of hand in a situation like that, he liked having the TV in front of him to watch, and especially liked getting to spend some quality time with Miles.

So he took a deep breath and sighed, and said trying to be dismissive of the whole punishment and act nonchalant, but still with clear stress and resentment in his tone, " I learned to run away after a while, so he didn't get to punish me for long! A year after I met Miles, I wasn't even livin' with my parents no more! B-But I wasn't always that fast. I had to learn I could be like that. H-He taught me how whether he meant to or not! Joke's on him! "

With everyone feeling increasingly worried and dreading the confirmation, Phoebe commented, " So it was bad enough that you had to run from him? That must have sucked! He doesn't sound very nice! " As Miles pretended to still be asleep listening in sadly, Scourge nodded, his head hung low still trying to ignore Jules' staring at him looking serious, and then he tried to downplay it to save face, complaining all casually at first and going into a bitter resentful rant,

" He thought he could insult me a lot and have that change me, and make me the perfect obedient little slave he always wanted. He was being bowed to by his subjects and I was stuck holding the cape. Anyone would've wanted to rebel against that smug face of his, lapping up the praise and ignoring his own son. At first I didn't freaking KNOW better, and I tried to get him to look at me from _respect!_ I didn't care about school but I tried anyway, I tried out the sports teams and rose to the top, but he never showed for anythin' and FORGET about reading my report cards and stuff. So I threw 'em all away, hit anyone who made fun of me and _finally_ got him to notice me, 'cause the principal dude called him as if _I_ was the one who did somethin' wrong. He insisted he was too busy for a meeting or anything, and he gave me the verbal lashing of the century. The first time I got him to talk to me for more than a minute and that's what I got. "

Bernie held back tears as he continued with his eyes watering a little acting furious at the end, while not realizing he had gone into a rant, " And my mom wasn't much better. Talkin' on her phone to her business all day, she might as well have been THAT thing's mom! I kept breaking her phones so she'd be forced to be an actual freaking mother for once in her life and she just acted all moody. I liked her better when she was ignoring me. "

He complained with his arms crossed and head down low, still refusing to look anyone in the eye, " Not like it was my fault, none of them were _ever_ satisfied with me anyways. Pheebs and I are a lot alike, 'cause I'm an accident too, and the folks wanted a daughter. They were disappointed in me from day 1. So eventually I wised up and realized nothing I did would make 'em act like parents, so I found something I _really_ cared about by dedicating my life to rebelling as much as I could! Why not embrace it instead of denying it? I'm the exact opposite of what they wanted, and that's exactly what they deserved. They could insult me all they wanted! Saying I was making mistakes, and ruining my own life, and being an embarrassment to the family and would grow up to be like criminal scum that's a totally worthless burden on society and like a _failure_ in every freaking way! B-But they DESERVED it!... And they were WRONG! "

There was an awkward silence as his fists clenched with his head down when he couldn't fake a smile anymore, and the rage simmering in him eventually broke and faded being replaced by bitter sadness at injustice as he just wanted to vent and expose his father, so he shouted, " He HIT me, okay?! There! He did it all the time! " his voice briefly cracking at the second word. Bernie gasped.

His eyes watered as he said defensively, " I was too young to defend myself yet, cut me some slack Sonic! Later on he was _nothing!_ And only after I manned up because of him. " Sick of all the attention for once in his life, Scourge said trying to act like he appreciated it, " They made me who I am today instead of just another Sonic! " and lashed out at Sonic turning to face him pointing at him,

" You don't know what it's like to be a _failure_ in everyone else's eyes! Hell, you think you were _better_ than him? You _weren't!_ " trying as hard as he could to keep tears from falling and acting furious and intimidating to hide it. Calming down to mere bitterness as he knew how depressing things were, Scourge said resentfully, " I could tell from the looks you gave me and the lectures on how I should act, you ain't proud of bein' associated with me. It's the same old thing, the same damn rigamarole with the high and mighty hero. _You_ think I'm a failure too. "

Despite seeing truth to his claim from spending his life disappointed in him, Sonic couldn't stand the accusation, and exclaimed sadly, " Scourge, I never said that! I-If anything, I'm more proud of you than I ever was before! You take down Robotniks as a HOBBY now! Sure, I'm not comfortable with how harsh you are about it, but at least it's something! It's better than before! I know you don't wanna be a hero, but it's the closest you ever got, and that's still somethin' to me. And they shouldn't have treated you like that, don't think we're on their sides for a second. "

Everyone else nodded reassuring him with Miles worried that he just caused Scourge to backpedal on all the progress he made, and then Tails pointed out with a nervous smile, " And it sounds like you're a good dad, no _failure_ would be _that!_ We never thought you'd take to it so well. "

There was a brief silence as Scourge let it all sink in that they were telling the truth, and after he practically whispered in a reluctant mumble, " Thanks, " he said defensively to Sonic smirking at points when he didn't have annoyance in his tone, " I'm _not_ a hero. I do what's fun, no matter what people think. I just happen to act like one and benefit people by coincidence now. Smashing robots and machines is a satisfying show-off of my power, I don't care what rules and society want out of me. I'm a WILD CARD, the ultimate rebel! I don't care what side I'm on, as long as it's not Robotnik's! I'm not the one who's delusional here. I just know what I enjoy. And I'll keep it up, evil twin or not. B-But in practice, I am, called one a lot. But at least it gets me respect! I still break laws when I want to! "

As Miles sat up leaving his chest feeling sorry for him like everyone else, Scourge said casually with his eyes closed, " Now if you'll EXCUSE me, I'm getting some roses and stuff for my girlfriend, " and quickly stood up and ran out of the house in a green and black blur, before anyone could stop him. Miles correctly assumed that the reason he was so quick to leave the house was because he wanted to dry his eyes where no one would see him, after the sheer turmoil of letting out that horrifying revelation.

As a result, he said sadly, " I think he should have some time alone, right now. At least for a few minutes, " and while no one really trusted Scourge not to cause trouble out of the house, nobody wanted to be the one he'd lash out at from seeing him cry, either, so they all stayed put, looking concerned.

As he comforted Bernie leaving the room, Jules thought sadly, " _I always knew there was a reason he turned out the way he did. I was hoping it wouldn't be THAT._ " Miles asked, " Could you guys please, you know, act like it never happened, the next time you see him? It'd be better that way. " Jules asked him looking concerned, " Did you know about this? "

Miles explained in response, looking worried, " No. He never told me he got punished at all, and when I brought it up once, he changed the subject. He always gave off the impression that his parents just let him do whatever he wanted! His father just seemed apathetic to him around me and never really insulted him, although Scourge did always tell me that when I was around, he was more polite. Maybe he didn't wanna scare me by punishing him where I could see it, and of course, Scourge could run at the speed of sound by the time I met him, so unless he, grabbed him, he wouldn't be able to keep that up anymore. His father told me that he wished Scourge was more like me. He even thanked me for being a good influence on him when we moved out! He always saw me as his son's little brother. I suppose I was the favorite, then. But I don't feel right about it. "

Meanwhile, while Jules was talking to Scourge, Sally used the zone-link generator to go to the dimension Scourge had bookmarked as his new home, looking for the doomsday device he threw in there to properly dismantle it. She was worried that simply attacking it could risk actually activating it by hitting one of its buttons; to her, it was more like defusing a bomb. When she went through the portal, she was unable to find it, and looked nervous as she walked towards what bore a striking resemblance to the Castle Acorn, coming in from the courtyard. Suddenly, she stiffened at being hugged by a little girl who looked like a much younger version of Fiona with a short red ponytail. She exclaimed, " Found you! Now your turn! "

Then she let go, wondering why she only hugged back at the last second, and immediately noticed that she looked different from the Sally she grew up with. " Aunt Sally, who stole your tiara?! And cut your hair?! " she asked looking horrified for her. Sally was both shocked at being called Aunt by Fiona's daughter and mildly annoyed at the girl basically saying she wasn't as pretty as the other Sally, as little as she liked to seem like she cared about her looks.

She felt awkward, wondering what exactly she should say. Scourge clearly wouldn't want her to tell her daughter the truth about what she was searching for, and she'd run into the other Sally eventually, meaning that lying about who she was would only make her look like an evil imposter. " I-I'm just visiting from another zone, " she said, technically not lying since she wanted to explore the castle the minute she saw it.

" OH! Okay. So you're a Sally that doesn't get to wear a tiara. Nice to see someone from another dimension myself! I'd love to show you around! I'm Phoebe Fox. My daddy Scourge is the coolest anti-hero in the world! " Phoebe said happily, and took her hand to lead her into the castle through the back door.

She wasn't without her suspicions, and wanted to " give her the tour " to keep her supervised just in case she was conspiring against her family. After all, she had been told about the Sally that, according to her mother, " didn't support our love, " and once punched her in the ribs, and she knew that the Sally in front of her matched the description. Wanting to confirm her suspicions a little, she asked her as she walked down the corridor with her, " Did you used to have long hair at one point? What happened? "

Sally replied, trying to maintain a dignified composure when she was smiling from the cute little girl nearby, " Yes, I did, but then I figured I looked better this way. So I asked my friend Bunnie to return it to the way it used to be before I grew it out. " She stopped short of telling her exactly why she made that decision, not wanting to tell her WHY she thought she had needed to get her mind and heart back on track in the first place, especially since she would tell Scourge all about it. She then wondered if he already knew from Fiona, since she was there when the worst of her stress came out of her.

" Are you a Freedom Fighter, too? " Phoebe asked her, and when receiving a positive but confused reply of, " Of course, " she said, " Good. Daddy told me about an evil Sally he used to date who wasn't always nice to him. But if you're a Freedom Fighter like Aunt Sally, maybe you might not be so bad. " Sally looked surprised. She thought if an alternate version of her was working with Scourge and Fiona, she couldn't be a hero.

She asked, " How many other versions of me has he met in his zone-hopping? " " I dunno, he never kept track, and he didn't always run into them. All he ever said was that they were all judgmental of him for being a free spirit with a leather jacket and fangs, even if they do appreciate him getting rid of Robotniks. You seem alright, though, " Phoebe replied, cautious at the end as she remembered that she hadn't been outright nice to her yet, just polite. For all she knew, she could've been resenting her the whole time and just keeping it subtle.

Wondering if the doomsday device was found by the version of Rotor there, Sally asked, " May I see Rotor's lab? Um, it's got a lot of interesting inventions in it, so why not see the most interesting area first? " realizing she seemed suspicious at first. Phoebe looked at her confused, and then agreed with a smile as if nothing ever happened, " Sure, I'll come with you! " wanting to supervise her, and thought, " _And if you ever try anything, I can run to my Mommy in a second. I dunno why I'm so suspicious of her, Sally Acorns are good people apparently. I guess this one being a total stranger to me gets me worried. Who knows what she's up to?_ "

As they headed for the lab in the castle down a corridor, Sally asked, " So, just out of curiosity, why does your daddy hang out with the Freedom Fighters and live in Sally's castle? He didn't seem too thrilled about MY Freedom Fighters. _Especially_ my Sonic. " Phoebe looked all wide-eyed thinking in astonishment and worry, " _This IS the Prime Sally! Why else would she be a former enemy of my dad? And say that he hated her Sonic? Calm down, Pheebs, use that brain of yours. He never said she was evil, just stuck-up and boring. And she's holding my hand, and hugged back, so she can't be all bad._ "

After a brief silence where Sally got worried about her reaction, Phoebe smiled again innocently and replied, " He's with them to have fun! Fighting Robotnik's sub-bosses is fun! He gets to destroy as many machines as he wants that way and get the respect he deserves for it! Not everyone gets to be praised for causing destruction. So he spends half the day at least having fun with them with my mom, and the other half on his assassination mission, going from zone to zone taking down Robotniks. "

Then Phoebe thought, " _I wonder if the Prime Sally could tell me some stories, too. Not much, since I'll probably not see her for that long, and my mom already told me a lot about her time with her, but still…_ " and she asked, " So my dad and you used to be enemies, huh? What was that like? "

Sally looked uneasy and said, " I don't think Scourge would want me to tell you about that if he hasn't. Chances are, he didn't tell you about it for a reason. He… he wants you to like him. He loves the fact that you admire him so much, so naturally he doesn't want it to stop because you disapprove of him. He made that pretty clear to my Sonic and Tails; he loves how much respect he's getting now. "

Phoebe asked looking unhappy, " Can I at least get a clue? A vague answer? I'm not gonna stop loving my daddy just because of something a stranger said. " " Well, he, uh… Do you know what he was doing before he became a hero? Technically he DID want to do something about Robotnik where I'm from, since it was necessary for his eventual plan, " Sally said nervously, mostly calling him a hero to humour her.

" He told me he conquered his planet, and then he got bored. So he wanted to conquer yours, too? I guess it took him longer than I thought to realize running planets was really boring and tedious. At least now he knows better! " Phoebe replied, as they turned a corner in the lavish hallway with paintings and flower vases that reminded Sally so much of her own castle. Sally was surprised to hear her refer to Scourge's world-conquering like that, and wondered if she came to that conclusion on her own or if Scourge actually realized it himself. She still couldn't get used to everything she was learning, and wondered what changed in him to make him okay with doing that. She explained,

" That conquering was more of a distant goal of his for my world. He really just came there to fight with my Sonic. They've been, _rivals_ for _years_. Eventually Sonic won because it turned out when Scourge powered down from a super form from the Anarchy Beryls, to prove he didn't need it to fight him, he became too exhausted to do anything. He left the zone after that. "

Phoebe assumed that Sonic had been in his super form too, and didn't make it clear that she thought that, sparing Sally the awkwardness of misleading her on purpose. Before either of them could talk some more, Phoebe noticed Fiona near the lab door, and hugged her saying happily, " Hi, Mommy! " Fiona hugged back not knowing Sally was there and said with a loving smile, " Hi, sweetie! " Fiona was wearing what looked like a little girl's silver tiara, implying that it was a gift from her daughter.

Then she noticed Sally, let go, and hid her discomfort with an expression of irritation and suspicion. For once Sally wasn't having the same expression at her, at least not at first, as she was too busy looking surprised at seeing in person what a good mother she could be.

Phoebe, knowing what Fiona must have been going through to some extent, told her with a reassuring but forced smile, " It's okay, Mom! She was nice to me! Even let me hold her hand! She wants to go to the lab. Has to be for a very good reason, or she wouldn't even be here. "

Fiona requested of her, " Could you please leave us alone together for a bit? We need to talk in private. " Phoebe said reluctantly, " Okay, " and briefly glared at Sally with resentment saying, " Don't hit my mommy again, " before running off in a red blur, leaving Sally looking stunned and uncomfortable that she told her daughter about that.

" Did you tell her WHY I did that? " Sally asked her glaring at her judgmentally, knowing from her friends that she must have sugar-coated a lot of stories to her daughter to manipulate her. Fiona said awkwardly, " Not entirely. I just said you were mad at me for choosing Scourge still, " and said angrily, " Do you really expect me to tell my daughter how I treated Tails? I'm keeping that and taking it to my grave! Don't you dare try to ruin this for me, I love that girl! Scourge and I don't want you or any of your friends turning her against me. "

Sally told her reluctantly with annoyance, " Relax, we won't. It wouldn't be right. At worst, she should discover your darkest secrets on her OWN, not because a former enemy told her. That's why Scourge came to my world today, to keep her from ever finding out some of them. " Fiona looked surprised and asked, " Former? You still hate my guts! And what do you mean, what's Scourge doing? "

Sally said calmly, " From what Sonic and Miles told me, he was really panicking over the possibility of his daughter using his teleporter and seeing the kind of ' legacy ' he made for himself on his own planet. He didn't want to be imprisoned again, either. At first, he stole a doomsday device from Robotnik on an impulse, but Sonic and Miles convinced him that was unnecessary and risky. So they convinced him to let Rotor alter the teleporter, to remove Anti-Mobius as an option from it. And as for the No Zone? He realized that if they haven't gone after him yet, they never will, as long as he doesn't pull a stunt like this again. "

Fiona didn't look happy upon learning of Scourge's initial plan, but reminded herself that she should've known what she had been getting herself into dating such a destructive hedgehog, and that he was still a gentle loving person to her and her daughter at the end of the day.

She crossed her arms and questioned, " So why are you here then? You should've given it back to him right away. He must be really impatient to see me again. " Sally then said, " The problem is that he threw the doomsday device through a portal to this dimension, and since the last place the portal was set was the castle courtyard, apparently, someone must have found it there. I came here to find it in the lab and dismantle it. "

Fiona deadpanned, " You had nothing to worry about, " and opened the door to the lab showing Rotor-FN taking a blowtorch to that very device. Sally looked stunned, and Fiona explained, " He found it hours ago and is taking great care to dismantle it as carefully as he can without it activating. We were wondering where it came from. " Rotor noticed her and Sally, said, " Hey, is that who I think it is? " and Fiona whispered to Sally, " Don't tell him, " and said nervously, " Yeah, it is, Rotor. "

He said, " We think Scourge might have found it in the lab of a Robotnik and brought it here to be dismantled safely. I'm just glad he was smart enough to think to do that and not just spindash it and risk pressing a button. It's like defusing a bomb, you don't wanna cut the wrong wire. " Sally couldn't blame Rotor-FN for thinking that, considering Scourge DID openly warp to various Robotniks on a daily basis, and he did stumble upon that device after doing that, and they had no reason to think he'd have a plan like that out of the blue.

Rotor-FN asked while working on it at the bench, " So what brings you here, Prime Sally? Come to insult my friend? Granted, I can understand why you'd be mad at her dating Sonic's evil twin, let alone a criminal. But things are different now! She's a great Freedom Fighter, especially with that super speed of hers. "

Fiona looked embarrassed at the final sentence being spoken right in front of Sally, who would no doubt tell Tails all about it. Sally said in shock, " Freedom Fighter?... And she's still with Scourge? " Fiona tried to look casual and shrug, and said, " Hey, I get to have my cake and eat it too. Now I can finally do both! Be with my true love, AND go on some fun, machine-destroying missions. " Before Sally could say anything in response, she changed the subject, " Uh, Rotor, why don't you tell her what we usually do? " and Rotor explained briefly,

" We use Warp Ring technology to go fight the war against the late Robotnik's sub-bosses. We just recently rescued Antoine's father from Mercia and returned his free will with the Sword of Acorns, and now we're taking the fight to Crocbot in Downunda! He's a huge threat, with all the weapons he puts in his robot body. Recently, he even gathered an arsenal of doomsday missiles! Sonic is fast, but not quite fast enough to deal with all three of them, so we were lucky we had Fiona and Scourge on our side. "

Sally asked in curiosity, " Crocbot's a threat? And how much does your Sally use the Sword of Acorns? When I had it, it got a little too commanding, and was forcing me to see the future against my will. Then Mammoth Mogul corrupted the Source of All and it had to be destroyed. " Rotor looked surprised and said, " My Sally never had a problem with seeing the future. She uses the Sword of Acorns all the time on missions because it's so useful. I don't know who that mammoth is, but I'm glad I never had to deal with him. "

Sally, feeling uneasy about the idea that Queen Sally had completely become one with the Source of All when she herself rebelled against it, simply said, " He became the powerful immortal he is through some freak accident that wasn't very likely to happen, so I suppose it only makes sense that not every dimension would have that happen. I hope most of them didn't. "

Fiona then said hurriedly, " Okay, okay, it's time to go home now. You've been here enough, " not wanting her to potentially turn her friends and daughter against her. Sally reluctantly created a portal back home admitting, " True. I just hope this world's Sally will be okay. That Sword creeped me out. " Rotor-FN then said, " She already told Phoebe all about her adventures with your group anyways, and she told us, so I guess there's not much we could talk about. Good luck out there! "

Wanting an excuse to prove Scourge's way was the better one, Fiona said with a smirk, " Yeah, good luck. With your no-execution policy, I figure you'll catch up to us in, say, 15 years? " As Sally glared at her, she then looked awkward and muttered too quietly for Rotor to hear, " And tell Tails I'm _sorry_ , " before running off in a red blur. Sally looked stunned, before smiling a little at last and saying, " Sonic already had. "

With that, she walked into the portal and returned home, where Scourge would finally get his teleporter back, having waited impatiently outside the lab's door for it. To Rotor's surprise, when he gave him the teleporter back, Scourge was holding a bouquet of roses and a heart-shaped box of chocolates in his left hand, and he said optimistically, " Fiona'll love all this, " to explain it to him. He then used the teleporter with his free right hand to create a portal back home, put it in his pocket, and ran through it into the castle courtyard, where Fiona and her daughter were standing near a row of flowers as the sun was setting.

" Daddy's home! " Phoebe exclaimed happily jumping up and down, alerting Fiona's attention to him immediately, and she smiled at seeing what were in his hands. With a satisfied smile, he gave her a bouquet of roses and a box of chocolates saying, " Sorry I was away for so long. Hope I didn't make ya worry, " which made Phoebe smile at the sight. Fiona was incredibly happy at getting them, so much that her eyes seemed to look sad as if she didn't know if she deserved it. Scourge then explained with a sincere smile mostly just addressing Fiona,

" The whole time I was gone today, I was missing you two; thinking about how it would've been nice if you saw when I did and said impressive stuff, wishing you were there to talk to, to smile like you always do and make things more enjoyable. We're always so in sync, we love havin' fun together no matter what that fun is, and while we do occasionally disagree, it's not that big a deal. We're optimistic, love excitement, we're free spirits who do what WE want, no matter who gets in our way! Not to mention we're both smokin' hot. Now I dunno if big ' romantic ' speeches are my thing, but I'm hoping that's enough to make my point that we're perfect together. "

Then he reached into his other pocket from his leather jacket and gave her a small box wrapped in light red wrapping paper and a red bow on top, and said, " Come on, babe, open it up! " as she stared at it with tears of joy, so stunned at the pleasant surprise of actually receiving a gift. Scourge had given her plenty of gifts before, mostly stolen jewelry, but she still couldn't get used to it, when she hadn't been given gifts at all for most of her life, so just the fact that he was giving her something at all was incredibly sweet as far as she was concerned. She opened it up as Scourge told her, " I'm gonna do something I should've done YEARS ago, " and she gasped happily at seeing what was in the box; an engagement ring. It had a rainbow-colored crystal on a gold ring, implying that he had stolen the most valuable one in the shop, at least she assumed he stole it.

He immediately took it gently out of her hands as Phoebe and Fiona watched the scene with smiles on their faces, and quickly knelt to the grassy ground, and asked with a smile, " Fiona Fox, will you marry me? " confident about her answer. " YES, YES! Of COURSE I'll marry you! " Fiona exclaimed overjoyed, and put on the ring excitedly before throwing her arms around him in a hug giggling. She had never been so happy in all her life, and from seeing her mother so overjoyed, Phoebe was happy too, jumping up and down giggling at the sight.

Scourge stood back up quickly, glad he was finally done humbling himself even a little bit by kneeling, and admitted speaking casually as normal again, " I kept ya waitin' for too long, babe. I just wasn't sure yet, I didn't know if I ALREADY met the one girl I wanted to make out with exclusively my whole life, and I wondered if it might be too good to be true, but as the years went by, I realized I was, well, just making excuses not to take a risk. And that's just not me. Just look at me, I take risks all the damn time! What was I waitin' for? "

He smiled some more and said, " You're the mother of my kid, and it just didn't feel right still callin' ya my girlfriend when you got that kinda upgraded status in my life now! Someone that important ain't temporary. Any time I'm not around ya, I feel the absence, and I end up wishing you were there, and that's just after a few minutes. I-I mean, hours. It's obvious I wouldn't be fully happy with anyone other than you, the mother of my kid, the girl that I was worried about when she was a crying baby and turned out to be one of the biggest joys to have around in my law-breakin life! So why not? Be my queen! Let's make it official. "

The blushing Fiona could do nothing but nod, choked up with tears of joy as she reflected on how she never thought she'd experience something as heartfelt as this herself – especially not that early – and at the same time, they were also partially tears of sadness, as she understood what making it official with Sonic's evil twin meant as far as her old friends and especially Tails were concerned. There was no turning back after this. She could imagine that if they had witnessed this years ago, they would've inconsiderately tried to stop it and ruined the moment, accusing Scourge of just manipulating her into making a mistake. She thought, " _They'd never understand. And who cares, anyways? Now I've got versions of them that WILL._ "

She asked with excitement, " How soon do you want the wedding? " Scourge replied, " You know me, I ain't the waiting type. " Fiona then said quickly, " Well, I hope you'll give me the time to have it planned a little! Oh, Sally and Bunnie are gonna be SO happy! They get to go to a wedding! Do you know who you want to be the best man? And Pheebs, you get to be a flower girl! "

Phoebe giggled at the idea of herself wearing a pretty dress throwing flowers from a basket down a red carpet with people at either side of her, and Scourge, after a little hesitation, said, " Alright, I guess we should invite people to it, obviously. They'd get mad if we left them out and got hitched on a whim like it was nothing. "

Fiona smiled nervously at how lucky she was that Scourge liked her enough to humor her on this. She never would've imagined she'd get to have the Freedom Fighters attending her wedding to Sonic's evil twin and being happy at that, even if they weren't the Prime ones. She already had an idea of who the maid of honor should be.

Scourge, meanwhile, wondered who exactly he should make the best man, and felt embarrassed at the fact that making Detective Sonic it was actually looking good to him. Sonic had been such an important figure in his life for such a long time, but it wasn't in a positive way, it was as a constant reminder that there was always someone who would be seen as better than him. And yet, he was able to get past that with his alternate counterpart and enjoy his positive qualities, and develop an actual respect for him that earned that position.

Not only did they share common interests, like snowboarding, and share the same taste in movies, but he recognized some of the same positive traits he had in himself in him, like being a thrill-seeker who was generally positive and confident that everything would work out how he wanted. He wasn't a criminal like him, but his " self-righteousness " towards him ended up mostly letting up after a few months of getting used to him, and without that big issue, the other Sonic ended up being a little endearing. He could always make Antoine the best man and skip over the issue, but it just wouldn't feel right when Antoine wasn't nearly as important to him.

The family all sped back into the castle in blurs and stopped in the living room, where all of the FN Freedom Fighters were watching TV, and Fiona exclaimed happily, " Good news! We're getting married! " With everyone's attention on them, Scourge added, " ASAP! I ain't the patient type! " with his arm around her affectionately. Everyone all congratulated them at once, and when the room finally quieted down again, Fiona said with a smile, " Phoebe's gonna be the flower girl, of course. And Sally? "

She put her hands on her shoulders and said, " I want you to be my maid of honor. You were always supportive of me, right from the start, even though you knew I broke the law. What better reward for being the first one to support the two of us? " As Scourge stared at the sight of it surprised at the sheer irony, Queen Sally replied happily, " Wow, thanks! What an honor! Well, evidently, it's the maid of honor, I-I just don't know what to say! " overwhelmed with joy at the news. Fiona then added, " Bunnie will be a bridesmaid, of course, " which made her smile and wonder what dress she should wear for the occasion, since she was never the dress type.

Scourge said casually, " That's right, ALL of you are special guests! Why not reward ya for letting us in on all those robot-smashin' missions? " making everyone look at him and Sally realize how lucky they were that he wasn't vehemently objecting to such a thing. Years ago, he would've definitely done that.

Scourge then went up to a smiling Detective Sonic saying informally, " You know, at first I thought you were just a stick in the mud, all judgmental of me 'cause I'm a criminal and all, but eventually you eased up on that and chilled out a little. And good on you, 'cause it let me see you for more than just that. You snowboard, you grind on rails, we share the same taste in movies and stuff, we got a lot in common actually. While you may not be as risk-taking as me, " he sat beside him and put his arm around him making him smile in amusement with a cocked eyebrow and continued trying to act like it was no big deal to him, " you're still fun to hang around! More than the other guys here. More than like everyone else here! So I want'cha to be the best man. No other dude would feel right as it, ya know? "

Detective Sonic opened his mouth for a snarky but good-natured remark at how ironic it was that he was basically calling an alternate version of himself his best friend, but Scourge saw that coming and ran out of the room before he could say a word, and he said instead to his friends, " That couldn't have been easy for him, " smiling as everyone still looked surprised.

Frost sighed, his two tails wrapping around himself a little on the couch, and Queen Sally quickly realized what was wrong and reassured him with her hand on his shoulder, " It's okay, he didn't mean to insult you. It's probably just that you're not the same age as him, so you're too young to be the best man. Sonic reminds Scourge of himself, and we all know how much he likes himself, with his ego and all. "

Frost complained, " Not that I'm not happy for him, because I am, it's about time he make it official. It's just that he still thinks of me as just a kid. Someone to hug and ruffle the hair of, and even then, now that's what his own kid is for. No offense, sis, he should be showing preference to you, but I always thought he and I would be best friends, that's all. I guess with the age difference, I shouldn't have thought that. "

Fiona, worrying that it might be like Miles' resentment all over again, reassured him, " It's not just that, it's also that you're not as ' fun ' as him. You're a cautious person, pointing out the negatives and telling him to be careful. It just clashes. He still respects you for your cool ice magic and how smart you are, remember, he talks you up all the time! But you have Sonic to be a big brother to you. It's not a big deal. " Frost smiled, and hugged Sonic-FN with a smile of contentment as he returned the hug. " You're right. I should focus more on that. I'll be the best man to HIS wedding, " he admitted, and everyone smiled.

Later on, just before going to bed, Queen Sally held the Sword of Acorns in front of her as it glowed with a golden aura, and with the amount of experience she had at using it every day, she was able to control it to make it only briefly show her a glimpse of the couple's future together. It was just enough to confirm to her that everything would be okay, and the two would have happy lives just like they were already, and that one day, Scourge truly would achieve his goal of eliminating every evil Robotnik in the multiverse.

By that point, he would be satisfied enough with his life and identity as a whole that he wouldn't feel the need to try to destroy Sonic for the sake of it anymore. With all the praise he got from the people who weren't afraid and suspicious of him, like a lot of others out there, he finally got the respect he thought he deserved. He would never admit that he made mistakes in his childhood by bothering Kintobor and his city, or fighting Sonic in the Prime world, or even admit that he might have changed by becoming open to being a Freedom Fighter at all, but it was clear that he was a little more good-natured than before, and defeating all of the Robotniks led him to fill the void by going after every Ixis in existence right afterwards. He never stopped fighting and adventuring, and being a rebel along the way. And neither would Fiona and her daughter.


	18. Chapter 17

On the sixth day after being invited into the Film-Noir-Zone Freedom Fighters, Scourge and Fiona found a surprising zone near the Prime one after assassinating Robotniks and Snivelys. " That's weird, nothin' but echidnas, " Scourge commented, looking around it from the other side of the Warp Ring zone-link generator. When they saw Lien-Da standing on a grassy hill under a golden sky commanding some people in black cloaks, Scourge, remembering how Finitevus used to make use of those people, said with a smirk and a shrug, " Let's cause some chaos! "

He jumped into the portal kicking Lien-Da in the chest, and as Fiona went into it after him out of curiosity for what excitement came next, Scourge spindashed so that all of the Legionnaires around her were thrown down the hills and into the river below. He said standing over the scared and confused Lien-Da, " Hey, there, amateur! "

She exclaimed, " Scourge? " He was immediately confused and said, " You know my name? You're the Prime one, then! " As she got up, she said, " Of course! Have you met any other Lien-Da's out there? " When he shook his head, she asked him, " What's going on? Finitevus couldn't have sent you here, he wouldn't care enough to get all the echidnas back. " Scourge and Fiona looked surprised, and Scourge said,

" Whoa, whoa, whoa, back? Wow, Knuckles is the worst guardian EVER. You mean to say this whole pocket zone has nothing but the Prime Zone echidnas? And Knux still hasn't gotten them all back! " He joked, " Man, if I could rub it in his face that I found them all before he did… " Then he put his hand on his chin saying, " Maybe I COULD… Fi, could you imagine the look on his face if _I_ brought these dudes back and not him?! That'd be the most hilarious thing ever! " coming up with some excuses to rationalize returning the echidnas to him as still being a villainous action.

Fiona commented in confusion, " He'd be furious, you'd probably wanna avoid his fists after that. " Then she relaxed and said, " But yeah, I guess it would be good for a laugh. " Lien-Da, who liked the idea of being brought out of the Twilight Cage to Angel Island with her army, told him, " Speaking of worst guardian ever, did you know what he did as Enerjak? " " A what? That sounds like a sports drink. " Scourge said in confusion, and Lien-Da explained, " Remember when Finitevus told you to kidnap Knuckles and then someone with a golden mask showed up with unbelievable power? "

Minutes later, Knuckles was sitting in front of the Master Emerald, bored out of his skull with his hand on his chin, when he looked apprehensive and stood up at seeing a Warp Ring appear in front of him and Scourge and Fiona go through it with amused smirks. As he stood up, he was secretly thrilled that finally something interesting was happening to him. As they had planned, they made sure the first words out of their mouths would be stuff that would make him stop in his tracks. Scourge said with a proud smile and his arms crossed, " Hey, Knux, guess who I found? " and pressed a button on his teleporter to show him his mother, stepfather and brother, standing in a crowd of echidnas looking confused and impatient that were all corralled there by a fast and intimidating Scourge. " My FAMILY! How did you, when! " Knuckles exclaimed, realizing as he was saying it that he should've expected a dimensional traveler to come across the echidnas eventually.

Then he saw Julie-Su push through the crowd, and wave at the Warp Ring with a smile. He called out her name, and said angrily, " I swear, Scourge, if you're threatening them- " " As if I'd bother with that. I mean, _you're_ not _Sonic,_ " Scourge replied looking disinterested. " Then why? " Knuckles questioned, as he went into the portal with Scourge and Fiona following him holding hands with each other.

Standing in front of the crowd, Scourge said excitedly as Julie-Su hugged Knuckles, " I thought it over, and not only is this a HUGE blow to your pride as a guardian since I had to do this FOR you, but bringing them back home'll do more harm than good! The Prime Zone's got Egghead and his seven sub-bosses and Ixis the ice-controlling wizard! Way more dangerous than their safe little bubble. So I'm not just being a goody-two-shoes for no reason, I'm STILL the baddest hedgehog around! And I'm not just freeing your favorite people, either. " Just as he was completing his last sentence, they saw the Dark Legionnaires that were all making up the north side of the crowd running into the Warp Ring.

Knuckles gasped and exclaimed, " The Master Emerald! " As Fiona smiled enjoying the show being held to his side with one arm, Scourge said with a laugh, " Is GIGANTIC, it'll be fine. It's not like they've got chisels. All those legionnaires? They don't got bombs in them that only Eggman can blow up no more. And they're still under Lien-Da's control. Looks like Robotnik got a new competitor! And about time, too, especially with the way bigger army. With any luck, the new Dark Legion'll take down Eggface before I will! So don't tell Sonic I'm a hero or anything! I just released the Dark Echidna Legion on the world! Though I don't really see what the problem with them is. Better than being roboticized! "

The last of the Dark Legion had ran into the Warp Ring, and the police echidnas started running into it after them in a hurry, cocking their ray guns. Scourge had instructed the crowd not to try to all go into the portal at once since it could technically only fit a few people in it at one time, which was why most of the crowd was waiting for their turn to get back home. But hearing Scourge's rant made them worry, with one of them saying, " Is this even worth it? " and another saying, " At least this place only had one threat, and that threat's leaving now! " A third one snarked, " Sure is ironic it's not the guardian who found us. We've been here HOW long? "

Julie-Su explained, " Lien-Da legionized everyone she could get her hands on – which INCLUDES brainwashing like you're being roboticized, Scourge - so her army's pretty big. By this point, half of the echidnas here, she got a hold of. That's half of our entire species. " Scourge contradicted, " For the PRIME Zone. " She put her arm around Saffron, Charmy's girlfriend, and said with a smile, " Lucky for them, we were here to prevent things from getting even worse. We even saved your mom a couple times. And the Brotherhood! " gesturing to the Brotherhood as they pushed to the front of the crowd. Sabre said with a jovial smile, " It's good to see you again, boy. Now that your family's safe, you can finally relax. Don't worry too much, the police are taking care of it, " gesturing to the Warp Ring that showed the echidna police fighting off the Legionnaires trying to take the Master Emerald.

Knuckles growled at the smirking Scourge and said angrily, " I don't know whether to thank you or punch ya! " completely confused at his actions. " Try to do both! " Scourge trolled him with a smirk, and he effortlessly Quick-Stepped out of the way of his punch as Knuckles said, " _Thanks!_ Huh?! " and accidentally hit Constable Remington. " Oof! " he said, falling to the ground, and Fiona burst out laughing at the comical sight.

Knuckles apologized, " I'm sorry! " and helped him up feeling like even more of a failure of a guardian, and then noticed Scourge looking at Fiona with a lovestruck expression of appreciation at hearing her giggle, his eyes slightly half-closed and a harmless-looking smile. Eventually, he put his arm around her and kissed her. " Hey, _lovebirds_ , I'm STILL here! " he said in annoyance, and Julie gave him a hug and teased cheerfully as Scourge kissed Fiona, " Aw, you're just jealous, " kissing him.

Of course, Scourge was quick to ruin the mood, as he teased, " So, my work is done. Bye, ' Enerjak! ' " and Knuckles cringed flinching at the cat being let out of the bag as Scourge ran through the Warp Ring with Fiona at his side, joining in on the chaos by attacking anyone in front of them, mainly aiming for Legionnaires since they were the ones trying to attack them unprovoked. Scourge reasoned, " This'll give us somethin' excitin' to do while we're waitin' for those slowpokes to all get here, " while echidnas were continuing to run through his Warp Ring.

Knuckles, on the other hand, was left in a very awkward situation, as his mother asked, " Enerjak? What's going on, why'd he say that? " The only thing keeping her from being panicked or mad at him was denial that it couldn't have been what it sounded like. Not enjoying the crowd murmuring about him, Knuckles explained looking depressed and ashamed, " Finitevus tricked me with a hex on the Master Emerald. He said I could use it with his help controlling its power to stop Eggman once and for all! But I put my faith in the wrong person and he ended up controlling ME. Although I wasn't ENTIRELY under his control. He wanted me to destroy the world, but I tried to do what I thought deep down was right… like banishing the dingoes to the desert, and getting rid of the dingo city and Kage along with it. " He looked especially ashamed at admitting that he had taken someone's life, even though it was someone who had proudly stomped dozens of echidnas under his boot.

Wyn reassured him while holding his baby, " At least you got the dingoes away from the city! I-It's a shame about the city itself, though… " Confused, Lara-Le asked, " But why? Why didn't you just get all of us back to Echidnapolis? That's where we all wanted to be! " Knuckles admitted, " Because it had technology in it, remember? I preferred the way you were living without your crazy future tech. " Constable Remignton deadpanned, " Like medical technology? A lot of people need medicine, you know. And Albion was a real fixer-up. "

" I'm SORRY, okay?! I don't know what came over me. Something about Finitevus' hex brought out the worst in me. Why did you think I never wanted to face you in Albion to begin with?! " Knuckles blurted out in frustration, as half of the crowd seemed to be turning on him, and muttering things like, " That Scourge guy's right, maybe it'd be safer to just stay here. " Not wanting to repeat the same mistake of forcibly transporting echidnas away from their homes again, Knuckles said with his arms crossed, " Fine, anyone who wants to stay can stay. But the Brotherhood can rebuild Echidnapolis. You know, magic and all? Let's go, Julie. "

His mother quickly hugged him, and said, " Don't take it the wrong way, honey, I still love you, " giving him an immense amount of relief that slightly offset the embarrassment as Saffron and Julie stared on with smiles on their faces, saying, " Aw! " Unfortunately, while half of the echidnas were going through the portal, a quarter of them didn't look too happy with the guardian. He looked ashamed, and Julie briefly rubbed his back to comfort him making him look over at her unhappily. She reassured him, " Well, it wasn't all sunshines and roses, but at least you got us back. " Knuckles complained bitterly, " Scourge did… And I guess I ought to thank him better. "

Of course, he was long gone the minute they all went into the portal. He didn't want to get a thank you from him like a hero, he wanted to have an excuse to mess with him, even if it meant being a hero in the process.

Later, Knuckles told Sonic about what had happened. " So you saved them all?! " Sonic said happily, being shown around the rebuilt Echidnapolis. " No. Scourge did. And he did it just to rub it in my face. " Sonic looked stunned, and then said with a chuckle, " Sounds like he was just making excuses to do the right thing. "

Knuckles said angrily, " He didn't just do it to be nice! He did it to release the Dark Echidna Legion on the world! Said that now Eggman would have a new competitor. And that he didn't see anything EVIL about them! They don't have bombs in them anymore, so only Lien-Da controls them now, and Scourge just let them through the portal! I had to chase them off my island! And he said that with Eggman and Ixis around, letting the echidnas come here would do more harm to them than good. Thanks to him and Fiona, some of them even stayed behind in the Twilight Cage, because they think it'd be safer! Granted, it is, but… "

After taking in all the information, slightly thankful that Eggman would be so inconvenienced by a rival villain group, Sonic said, " Huh. Fiona, too? Guess I shouldn't be too surprised that she's still following him wherever he goes. " Thinking he was missing the point, Knuckles replied in exasperation, " Yeah. And I saw the smitten way he looked at her when she laughed. The two are tighter than ever now. Don't tell that to Tails. " Sonic said with a shrug and a smile, " He's got Phoebe now, remember? She's the Fiona he really wanted! I don't think he'd care. "

The alternate dimension " Queen Sally " was a good person in practice, but she was surprisingly manipulating, being able to get people to do what she wanted and make them act how she wanted just by saying the right things, and with the way she kept Scourge's loyalty, it showed. She made sure that whenever she was giving some orders to Scourge, she would only say, " I need you to, " rather than just telling him to do something, because she knew that he enjoyed feeling needed, like he had a strong purpose and was appreciated, and he loathed being told what to do. She instructed everyone else in her group to do the same. Being outright told to do things without any hint that it was just a request would only fester resentment in him after a while, making his fun smashing robots feel more like a job, but being told, " I need you, " by someone, especially Tails, seemed to bring out a side of him they didn't usually see.

There was one time when Frost Prower had a head injury and was dizzy, where he asked him in his blue bed, " Wait! I need you! " Scourge quickly softened up, and when the kid said, " I guess Sonic should do it instead, " Scourge quickly replied, " I can do anything Sonic can do and better! Tell me what you want. " " Well, um, I need a McDonalds chocolate milkshake to make me feel better with all the pain. And it would be great if you could, you know, pay for it? " he timidly said, and handed him some money from his bedroom drawer.

" Alright, alright. For you, " Scourge responded with a smile, ruffled his hair taking the money, and ran out of the castle at the speed of sound. He proceeded to cut to the front of the line of the restaurant in a green blur, saying with a grin, " One chocolate milkshake for Tails! And lucky for you, he wants me to pay for it, so here's the dough! " Fortunately, nobody dared to complain. Some of the people there found themselves smiling at the heartwarming sight of him bothering to pay at all. He already had a reputation for stealing jewelry. Occasionally Fiona would pay for it with mugging money afterwards on a whim because she was in a great mood, chuckling all the while.

Not only did Queen Sally remind him that he was needed, but she made sure to always thank him, even to the point of thanking him separately from the rest of her friends rather than just saying, " Thanks everyone. " That way, he knew for sure that he was appreciated and his efforts were being noticed, not just taken for granted, something that would've been a huge factor in making him get disillusioned and bored of helping them. Instead, he was consistently told by at least most of the Freedom Fighters that he was considered an asset to their team, despite being called in public situations by her, " an outside agent, I assure you. He just decides to tag along and destroy some robots. Who am I to say no? And since he's a wild card who does what he wants, I'm not really to blame for his various whims. "

She also made a habit of getting Scourge not to kill their enemies by convincing him to torture, or " mess with " them, instead, which usually just involved him using his super speed to do things like spin them around in circles and humiliate them. With his attention span and impatience, he would always get bored with it in minutes and move on to the next thing after being distracted. And Sally told the rest of her friends to do the same thing.

On the twentieth night that Scourge and Fiona were allowed to stay in the guest room of Queen Sally's castle, Scourge had a horrible nightmare. Normally, his occasional bad dreams related to either prison, his issues with Sonic and his inferiority complex over him, or a combination of the two. Here, it would be about the former, but not in the way that it usually was. In his dream, some zone cops, including Zonic and Zector, ambushed him when he had just finished assassinating a Robotnik with a blue cape. Zonic sent a taser at him that was shot out of a bow, sending him falling to the floor of the lab screaming in pain from an electrocution. As he was writhing in pain, Zonic ran over and took it out of him, only to put a control collar on his neck.

He gasped as his pupils shrunk in fear, panic overwhelming him as another zone cop handcuffed his immobilized hands, unable to move. Zonic helped him to his feet and told him in a serious voice that was oddly calm and reassuring, " Don't worry, it'll only be for a week. Zobotnik's recognizing your service to the multiverse, after all, " gesturing to the Robotnik and Snively he just defeated.

As Scourge stared at him confused, with the reassurance not getting rid of his panic, Zonic continued, " We're putting you in solitary away from the other prisoners, since you've suffered enough from them, but you're gonna spend the rest of that week learning exactly what kind of a king you were! " Scourge still felt panic overwhelming him from the sheer idea of going back to prison after all the misery he went through there, but since he was being showed a surprising amount of mercy, he showed mostly just bitter resentment in his expression.

" So I get to watch a documentary about me? Sweet! " he replied with a nervous smile and happy tone, looking on the bright side and smirking afterwards. The zone cops rolled their eyes, and Zonic created a Warp Ring in front of him and said, " We'll see if you keep thinking that's sweet by the end. I don't think you know just how bad an impact you had on the world you ' woke up. ' " Scourge felt a pit in his throat startled and exclaimed, " _How'd_ you know about that talk with him?! " recognizing his last two words from his talk with Jules. Zonic simply pushed him into the Warp Ring not answering him, and before he knew it, he was being tied to a toilet by rope in front of a large TV screen in a white padded cell.

Zonic put duct tape over his mouth saying, " And this is so you don't talk and drown out the lesson, " and Zonic put the DVD into the DVD player saying, " This is one of MANY, Sonic, " as Zector got ready with the remote control. Scourge glared at him for calling him Sonic, something that happened almost constantly in his dreams, but he was immediately distracted by the volume of the documentary starting. The volume wasn't high enough to cause permanent hearing damage after a long time, but it was high enough that he couldn't hear himself think, and before he could think to close his eyes, Zonic made absolutely sure he wouldn't be able to.

The third zone cop, an echidna, said with a smirk holding some eye drops " We'll make sure to keep your eyes hydrated with an automated eye-dropper machine, not that you really deserve it. You'll be back with your favorite squeeze soon enough. "

The rest of the dream had him do nothing but have to watch documentary footage about just how bad of an impact his rule had on Moebius. At times he wondered if it even was a dream, because he remembered it so vividly afterwards. The whole time, he was trying to smirk and enjoy the results of his rule, and believe that the people he inconvenienced – mainly criminals – deserved everything they got. But as he saw in-depth footage about how exactly he had affected Anti-Knuckles and his people, he started to have negative feelings, about more than just the annoyance of him being preached and lectured to just by being forced to watch something trying to change him. Scourge saw people cry at worst as they talked about their perspective on that time in detail. The most major problem with his rule - aside from the little tidbit that he had the island Miles was tormented on destroyed - was that he ordered for all of the prisons on Anti-Mobius to be destroyed, since he hated them his entire life, and this not only killed everyone in them, " deserving " criminals and wardens both, but also forced the legal systems to switch to putting the criminals who would be sent to prisons in either insane asylums, or when they ran out of room in those, they had to switch to community service for them instead. Even quite some time after Scourge had left his planet, the effects of that worldwide prison bombing still lingered to that day and most of the world hadn't rebuilt their prisons yet. Scourge had been proud of that accomplishment for a long time, but the documentary wouldn't let him ignore the fact that he had people killed in the process, including people who were very much innocent, as he saw how devastated the families of those victims had been by what happened, some to the point of having the same disorder Miles had suffered from his whole life.

The footage went over even the most minor of problems he caused, like job loss, or orphaning some kids who had lost their parents when he destroyed some buildings of rebels against him, and it made sure to remind him what he did to his parents, and how that affected other people when they heard the news. That got to him, but he tried to rationalize it away as him remembering what neglectful parents they used to be and wishing that they had been better to him just from being reminded of them at all. He tried to think of his reaction as just him finding it all annoying, and couldn't wait to be home. Every so often, he worried about how Fiona and the others were reacting to his absence. They wouldn't bother breaking him out if he was only going to be there for a week, especially since he was captured with his zone-link generator.

It was the longest " dream " he ever had, and oddly detailed as well, more than an actual dream would. Finally, he was let out, with Zonic saying, " Okay, you're free to go. And remember, don't threaten the No Zone or anything, or you'll be right back. Hopefully this experience taught you some decency, " and untying him. Scourge resisted the powerful urge to punch all of the zone cops around for the tedium he went through that week, because he was terrified that if he did, he'd have to stay here for the rest of his days.

Zonic used Scourge's zone-link generator to create a portal back to Fiona, leading to their bedroom in the castle. Zonic gave him it and pushed him through the warp ring in a second, and it closed behind him. Scourge fell out of it to the bed in front of Fiona, and shouted at it out of spite, " Like hell it did! Jerks, " alerting her to his attention immediately.

Fiona embraced him immediately, saying while overjoyed, " Scourge! You're okay! " He sighed in relief thankful at seeing her again, and returned the hug saying, " Of course I am. Zone cops just got me for a while to teach me a lesson. But don't worry, babe, they won't be changin' me any time soon! " The hug ended and Scourge laid down on the bed stretching to be able to move again, saying with a relieved smile, " The whole thing already feels like it was just a bad dream. "

Then Fiona revealed looking worried, " Well, it wasn't! You were gone for a week! We were worried that you had gotten kidnapped, or roboticized, or worse! You don't have any idea what I… " She stammered trying to avoid looking too weak in front of him, although his concerned expression proved it was too late for that, and she sighed, tried to calm down and smile again. She said to reassure him, " Rotor's been working on making his own zone-link generator to try to go looking for you. It's a good thing you came back, since apparently, we would've never been able to find you. So something good came of this, at least. What matters is, I've finally got you back! "

Scourge smiled in response and nodded at the end, before yawning and saying, " If you don't mind, babe, I need to get some sleep. They only let me have the bare minimum. " He closed his eyes as Fiona noticed the bags under them, and put blankets over him ignoring how she was disappointed that he had to do that right when she got him back, and he fell asleep for a nap in seconds.

The minute Fiona left him alone, Zonic shot a Super-Emerald-powered energy beam at him through the interdimensional portal above his bed, which had only been closed from Scourge's side. The energy beam was made of special new Zobotnik technology that was designed to erase only specific parts of his memories.

From that moment on, while he would remember watching those documentaries, he wouldn't remember the circumstances that he saw them in. The beam made him conclude that he had spent the last week in a coma instead, and forced him to continue believing that even in the face of being contradicted. To finish it all off, the zone cops made sure that the people in Scourge's new " gang " wouldn't contradict that belief. He was better off not remembering what exactly had happened. It would only cause him to harbor even more resentment for the No Zone, which would overshadow the lesson Zobotnik wanted him to learn.

When it was all said and done, Zector asked his boss, " So your plan worked, but, if we can make devices that selectively erase memories and stuff, why couldn't we just make devices to rewire criminals' brains to make them good? " Zobotnik replied, " Because that would be brainwashing, and I refuse to do something like that. Besides, it's too complicated. It's a miracle we even got THAT device working. "

In the Mobian England of Mercia, Detective Sonic's parents had finally been deroboticized, because his Uncle Chuck had lured them into a roboticizer, that was reprogrammed to deroboticize any Robian who went in it. His own version of Jules looked a bit different from the Prime one before he was roboticized, with spectacles and a brown coat, but was otherwise very familiar-looking to Scourge, being an adult blue hedgehog with a blond dyed streak of hair in the center of his head, and while Scourge knew better than to even threaten him and his wife since it would get him kicked out of the FN Freedom Fighters, he clearly wasn't comfortable with seeing someone who reminded him so much of his own father. Confused, Jules asked, " Where am I? What's going on? " not remembering his life as a robot slave.

Detective Sonic hugged him with a relieved smile saying, " Dad! You're back! You and Mom were Eggman's robot slaves my whole life, and I thought you had been killed! Just an hour ago, Rotor found out where you've been all this time, so we came here with a Warp Ring to get you! We lured you two into something reprogrammed to bring you back to normal. " " We? " Bernie said in confusion, and asked, " Who's this? " looking at Scourge, who was looking away uncomfortable the entire time at seeing Sonic's parents.

Trying to avoid looking too awkward, but still not feeling in a good enough mood to have his usual confident act, he just looked annoyed as he said, " I'm Scourge. At least that's what I call myself nowadays. I'm, well, HIM from another universe. But I'm still my own person, and I made damn sure to be the most unique Sonic of them all! Even changed my appearance powering up with a Master Emerald! " He smiled at the final sentence. They looked worried at him swearing, and he looked awkward again. Realizing this was an uncomfortable and confusing situation, Detective Sonic did the talking for him and explained with a nervous smile,

" I know what you're thinking, he's my evil twin, but he helped me out a lot! He's part of the reason you got freed in the first place! He smashed the badniks making a distraction while I got you into the deroboticizer. He breaks robots all the time, and that's why he helps us out! In fact, you'll be happy to know that he and his girlfriend are the ones who freed the world from Robotnik! I wish I could've been the one to do it, and that he was nicer about it, but it got results, at least, the Acorn Kingdom's been peaceful ever since. "

Intrigued, his mother said with her hand on her chin, " So he's a hero? " Scourge groaned with his arms crossed and rolled his eyes, and Detective Sonic said with a playful smirk in a quieter voice, " Technically, but don't tell him that. " Then he said more loudly, " He's just havin' fun. "

Scourge said, " So if you're done makin' chit chat, we gotta get goin', " and impatiently used his Warp Ring to create a portal, ushering them all into it. Trying to break the ice with him and start a conversation of some sort, Bernie asked him as they went through the portal, " What's your girlfriend's name? " " Fiona. You'd be hard-pressed to find a name that's hotter! Or a girl! She's pretty awesome, especially since I used a Chaos Emerald to make her just as fast as me. You'll see, " Scourge said, cheered up by talking about her with a tone full of respect. Now in a better mood, he asked, " So, uh, what do ya two do all day, for a livin'? What's different about you? "

Jules admitted, " Well, ever since my knee injury, I couldn't be a soldier anymore, so I settled down and became just a humble librarian. I still miss those days, though. " Scourge replied casually, " Well, even if I fixed that little problem with a magic gem or somethin', you'd probably just get injured again, so maybe it's better that you stick to the safe jobs, ' pops. ' " FN Jules added, " I wanted to go into politics, but the Great War conscripted me, and you know the rest. Next thing I knew, I wasn't a robot anymore. " Scourge looked uncomfortable and avoided eye contact at hearing that.

Bernie then said, " And I just stay at home. I was going to get a business degree from college, but I changed my mind on that when I got pregnant, I figured that kind of career would take up too much of my time. " Scourge looked serious and said, " Good choice, " which worried and surprised them as they walked down the hallway of the Castle, and they wondered why he said that. " That's ALL she ever _cared_ about, " he added bitterly under his breath, and they immediately understood what he might have meant, their eyes widening in worry at what kind of a mother he used to have.

Soon, he saw his four-year-old daughter Phoebe and Fiona waiting for him in the castle with excited smiles. Unfortunately, after happily greeting FN Sonic's parents hugging them, she said, " I've never had grandparents before! My mom's parents ditched her, and my daddy had to take down his own father since he was an evil neglectful dictator. " Her letting it slip what he did to his father caused an immediate awkward moment, as FN Jules and Bernie looked nervous right away, and Detective Sonic merely looked annoyed since he was already told about that.

Fiona told her gently, " Pheebs? Go to your room, " and she reluctantly did so, realizing as she ran off that she had made a mistake. " So you ' took down ' your own father? " Jules responded with his hands on his hips, and then added with his arms crossed, " I guess I shouldn't be so surprised, you're the evil twin of my son. "

Scourge was immediately irritated at being treated like he was that predictable, labelled as an evil twin again, and with that combining with him wanting to explain why his father deserved his fate, he found himself revealing bitterly while looking away from him, " He used to beat me. " Bernie gasped, and Detective Sonic cringed as Scourge showed them what was beneath the fur to the left of his chest while saying, " I still have some scars. "

He snapped defensively with a hint of sadness in his tone, " He got what he _deserved!_ I gave him a taste of his own medicine! Showed him exactly what it was like to get a punishment like that! And I, I… " He looked sad, and admitted resentfully, " It was an accident, okay? I didn't know my own strength. "

This at least caused them all to soften their gazes, but when he noticed Detective Sonic start to smile thinking he wasn't all bad, he defensively continued, " I was PLANNING to put him in a prison to be tortured the rest of his life for child abuse, but the selfish jerk couldn't take it for more than a few minutes. He could dish it out, but he couldn't take it. If anything, I would've been HAPPIER if he survived so he could get punished for longer than that, instead of taking just one thrashing to my dozens… "

Scourge then looked melancholic again, and admitted, " What I really wanted was for him to be a dad that was worth a damn, who actually cared about someone other than himself, but maybe it was too late for that, even if he did change. I doubt I'd ever forgive him anyways, just be uncomfortable if he tried. I'll never know now! "

His face felt like it was heating up and he faced away from them with his arms crossed, as his eyes started to water, and he said, " Leave me alone! I have no regrets! " trying to look tough. Understanding what was going on, Bernie told her son, " Sonic, why don't you go make some chili dogs? " and the minute he ran off in a blue blur, she went in front of Scourge and hugged him. Evil twin or not, he still felt like her son. He still triggered the same parental instincts in both of them; he had the same voice, body shape, scent, and generally the same personality, only he was more destructive, cynical, and selfish.

Scourge gasped, stunned and completely confused, and exclaimed, " W-What are you doing? Why are you squeezin' me with your body?! " in denial that he could get that kind of affection from them so easily, especially since they weren't even _his_ parents.

Jules reassured him calmly, " You did NOT deserve to be treated like that, no matter how you behaved as a kid. He went too far. And instead of realizing his mistakes and fixing them, he… You deserved better. Perhaps you could've been happier then. " " Well he made me who I am today. I wouldn't spit on that, " Scourge replied, trying to look on the bright side as he returned the hug and relished in the affection. He was slightly frustrated with himself for that, and told himself he was just using them for the affection and compassion.

To end it all off, Scourge gasped again when the alternate Jules gently but quickly stroked his hair to comfort him, while saying, " We may not be your actual parents, but we still care about you, and I don't care how long it takes, we're going to prove it. If you'll let us. " It took a second for him to recognize it as the loving caress that it was, and not just as him touching his hair for no reason, but when he did, his shoulders slackened and his spines relaxed as he breathed a sigh of contentment closing his eyes, enjoying the hug from Bernie more than ever.

When she let go, he was sad that it had to end so soon, and resisted the urge to hug her again and embarrass himself. Instead, he said in astonishment with a nervous smile at one final ruffling of his hair, " Wow. You sure you're Sonic's parents? " Bernie said with a giggle, " We'd know if we weren't! " He chuckled, and admitted, " Thanks… " He stopped smiling self-conscious, and said defensively in a quiet voice and his arms crossed,

" But I won't march in lockstep with everything you tell me to do, capiche? If I think it's smart, I'll go along with your advice, but I got my own mind and you can't control me one bit. " He let himself smile a little as they did in response, as he said, " You can feel free to treat me well like that, though. As long as NOBODY'S watching. " He took off just like that as they smiled, with Jules saying, " There might be hope for him yet. "

After Detective Sonic had gotten his parents back, they moved in with him, living in the large lavish Castle Acorn where there were plenty of bedrooms to spare; they were there temporarily while a house for Sonic and his parents was being built in Knothole. This meant that they started having most of their meals with Scourge as well as him, since he happened to be in the living room with the other Freedom Fighters as they were watching TV. Seeing people who reminded him so much of his parents took some getting used to, as he felt uncomfortable around them rather than being his usual self, and had to force himself to act natural for the first week, which was enough to fool the alternate Antoine and Rotor, but no one else.

The rest of them could see that he was awkward around them, and Queen Sally insisted on something being done about it. She decided to arrange that he would spend some time alone with them, to hopefully resolve that issue and get him more comfortable. She told him in the living room, " Scourge, I need you to go to Uncle Chuck's restaurant with Sonic's parents for lunch today. It's imperative that you do so. They're waiting for you there. "

Scourge naturally asked, " Why? " She replied calmly while removing some dollars from her purple purse at one point, " Do you really care? You wouldn't say no to chili dogs, would you? I'll pay for them in advance. Also, I'll know if you just went there for a second and took off. " Scourge cursed, " Damn, " looking mildly annoyed turned slightly away from her.

He asked with suspicion, " But why, though? " " Well, we want to reward you for everything you've done for us so far! And we figured that maybe if we did this, you'd be less likely to stop helping on a whim, " she answered with a confident smile, making up an excuse. " But with Sonic's parents? C-C-Can't I just get some later? " he questioned.

Queen Sally fought back the urge to just threaten him with the loss of that chili dog offer and not explain anything further, because she realized how a rebel would react to a threat and a " because I said so, " justification, and instead teased him,

" What, are you scared? They're not bad people! They're not gonna hurt you or anything. " Scourge said defensively, " No! That's not what, it's just weird, that's all. " Queen Sally said with a sly smile, " Offer going once, going twice, " holding the dollars up, and Scourge impulsively took them saying, " Fine, " and justified as he stormed out of the castle, " but only because Uncle Chuck's chili dogs are the best in the city. I'm hungry right now, anyways! "

She giggled and thought with a smirk, " _I can play him like a fiddle! I'm such a genius._ " She briefly felt guilty, looking sad, before rationalizing in her head, " _I still care about his well-being. He's not a terrible friend. I'm just trying to make his relationship with his parents better! Well, ' his. ' It's all for the greater good, just like always._ "

Detective Sonic's parents were at a table in Uncle Chuck's restaurant waiting nervously, and Bernie asked her husband, " I don't know, honey, what if he's not showing up? " Jules reassured her, " Then we'll have a quiet lunch of delicious chili dogs in peace. Either way, we win! " Bernie smiled and said, " It's times like this where I remember why I married you in the first place, " and just then, a green and black blur sped into the restaurant and almost instantly revealed itself to be Scourge when he stopped in front of the counter, put some dollars on it saying, " The usual, " to the worker familiar with him, and sighed before reluctantly walking over to them. Bernie was smiling sweetly to reassure him the best she could, while Jules had a blank emotionless expression of anticipation, wondering who was going to talk first and what was going to happen next.

Of course, Scourge, the chatty hedgehog he was, was the first to talk, saying in annoyance with his hand on his face and chin and elbow on the table, " I'm guessin' ya already know why I'm here, right? Queen Sal sent ya here? " They both nodded, and he continued while moving the napkin in front of him around with the other hand to try to look disinterested,

" Yeah I figured. I'm here for the easy chili dogs, then. And she said she'd know if I just took off. So, uh, ya better have stuff to talk about 'cause we'll be here a _while_. " He continued to stare listlessly at the table with his eyes melancholic more than annoyed for a few seconds, until Jules, being the braver parent, was the one to break the silence with asking him, " What's wrong? "

Scourge's eyes squeezed shut briefly before opening and he grumbled, " What do ya think is wrong? You're my parents! I mean NOT my parents. It's weird! Especially after I didn't exactly have a fun time growin' up with my _own_ mom and pop! All they ever cared about was their jobs! And now you guys suddenly plop into my life and it's suddenly supposed to be all hunky-dorey, give me a break. There's no way it's as good as it sounds. " Understanding why he was so cynical about it when he had been turned off of the mere concept of having parents, Bernie wondered what to say, before settling on, " It's okay. "

To the surprise of the nearby customers, Scourge's hands hit the table briefly in a meaningless expression of frustration to emphasize his point as he ranted looking at them, " It's not okay! W-What is this supposed to mean? I mean, could it even be that easy? Do you know me at all? Just because I'm a Sonic, like, okay, I've got some things in common with him, I KNOW. I'll never hear the end of that. But you don't know me. If you knew about half the things I've done in my life, you'd never want anything to do with me, just like THEM. " His eyes briefly felt watery and he willed himself to bring things back to normal, taking subtle deep breaths in and out to calm down.

After a brief silence from the nervous parents in front of him, Jules said, " You could always try. Try to prove us wrong, " as Scourge stared down at the table looking depressed with his hands on his chin. Bernie reassured him, " We know you're his evil twin, we're not delusional on that front. But that's not gonna stop us from caring about you. And wanting what's best for you, no matter what. "

After a few seconds passed, she made herself add, " We do love you, you know, even if you don't believe us. " The sentence hit him like a wind of hot air and he took a pause, and a subtle deep breath, still looking unsure all the while. He briefly felt moisture in his eyes again just from hearing those words. Scourge muttered unhappily, " It's fake, " moving the napkin and bending it to look disinterested.

" No it's not, we promise! " Bernie responded impulsively, feeling sorry for him. Jules said to him feeling like things were getting desperate, " It'll be alright. You'll see. Just tell us something, tell us about you. Y-You usually _love_ talking about yourself! But you've been so quiet recently. " There was a silence as Scourge dwelled on the option he was being given, and finally said bitterly,

" You want me to tell you something? Fine, just to prove my point. I took over a whole planet once! Brought it to its knees. " They actively prevented themselves from visibly reacting to that, keeping their curious expressions from before, but it was quite a sentence. Wanting to make him not as annoyed out of intimidation, Bernie reassured him, " T-There you _go!_ That wasn't so _hard!_ Keep going, talk about that! " Both of them were curious about everything he'd have to say, having learned almost nothing about him since they met him as everyone in the team were respecting his privacy, and they tried to focus on their curiosity as the big motivator to just listen to everything he'd have to say, no matter how bad it would be.

Scourge, not being happy because of the mood he was in and the fact that it was only in the past, explained, " Not much to say, really. Me and my girl warped to my home world, beat my old gang in a fight and got Alicia to make us the leaders. " " Alicia? Sally's mother? " Bernie commented as a follow-up question. " No, Anti-Sally. I made sure everyone on my planet changed names and looks so they wouldn't be living in their Prime counterpart's shadow anymore. I hope that policy of mine wasn't undone the minute I left the place. I know that the evil King Maxx kept it up for his prison gang. The point is, I took her throne, gave the boring country running to Fiona, and, you know, removed the other competitor for power, " avoiding looking at the nervous Jules as he said that last sentence clause.

He admitted as they looked nervous, " I thought it'd be great! I was king of the world! But I got bored. Turns out sitting on a throne with nothing to do but stare at the wall, isn't fun! Yeah, no shit. I-I guess I was more a fan of the concept of becoming king than actually being one. I was giving all the running-stuff-work to Fiona, and I never bothered checking, but I assumed she did okay. But she wasn't having fun, either. The conquering was great, the most exciting part of our lives up to that point, but afterwards, when I got what I wanted, it was humdrum. Business as usual, before I ditched my gang for probably the same reason in the first place, that every day was the same. Find bozos like criminals who deserve an ass-kicking and mug 'em. " He sighed in boredom, feeling like he did minutes before his gang had walked out on him.

Detective Sonic's parents tried to avoid looking disapproving of him for what a villain he was, but couldn't help looking worried, at the very least. Fortunately for them, Scourge was so caught up in talking about himself, or rather his past, that he didn't notice. And fortunately for the sake of the conversation, Queen Sally had ordered the restaurant worker ahead of time to not serve them until he had talked with them for long enough. Bernie asked for the sake of a follow-up question, " What kind of criminals? What did they do? " " Ya know, rapists, drug dealers, those kinds of jerks. Street trash, basically. Problem is, street crime was becoming a lot and a lot more rarer because people knew they couldn't get away with it as much anymore, and other crimes are harder to find. What was I supposed to do, mug people for embezzlement? Good thing Boomer could hack into the police radios! " Scourge answered bluntly, saying the final word of the second to last sentence with a sarcastic laugh.

" I thought you just terrorized the innocent, " Jules said in confusion, hoping it wouldn't annoy him from being guilted in any way. Scourge explained, " Ally's gang was officially a sort of harsher police, or a vigilante group as we preferred to be called. So those were our main victims whenever we wanted some stress relief. Whenever we were starved of activity and excitement and got really, really bored. What else was there to do? Sit on our asses watchin' _TV?_ Without any madman roboticizing and pollutin' and shit, well, yeah, it was a better place for the _common_ peeps, but things were so _cushy_ around there! It felt empty! For an adrenaline junkie like me, it was so BORING! Where's the challenge in that?! "

He continued looking impatient and bored, " Dr. Kintobor had that force field always up around Knothole, so I couldn't go there, and it's not like HE was sending killer robots to challenge me. Just hid like a wuss. He was the lamest ' enemy ' I ever had. Months and years of no progress with the guy, and it started to feel so pointless. Damn it, I'm sounding like Miles here, but it really did, it felt like a waste of time. Especially now. " His " parents " at least knew about Miles already, since Frost had at least told them that Scourge used to be friends with a counterpart of his named Miles. They figured that they would wait until later to ask them more about his time with him, since it seemed like a " soft side " thing for him.

" Who was Dr. Kintobor? Didn't you, wait, the Kintobor clan! Was that Robotnik? " Bernie asked. Scourge said, " Uh-huh. But he and him are night and day. Though I didn't get to know much about him personally since he just hid in his tower of healing most of the time. " She looked surprised repeating, " Tower of healing? " and he said looking bored,

" Yeah, he was a vet. Taking care of sick and hurt animals. You'd think it'd get repetitive after a while. This dude would never roboticize nobody, he wouldn't hurt a fly! And pollution for him's a no-go, when I couldn't care less. Well, at least back then. A few years ago I realized how much it smells, Robotnik's wastelands. But he even fussed about litter, he sent his Sweepbots after them all the time! Even though it wasn't his problem, he still dealt with it! It bothered him like he was obsessive-compulsive and didn't have the furniture in a room exactly right. "

They looked mildly annoyed with him at the end and he snarked with his hand resting on his chin and elbow on the table still, " What, am I not being ' PC ? ' " already starting to feel like his point was being proven and the silence was from judgement, rather than just them letting him talk.

Bernie said, " No, you're right, OCD people can do that, but I doubt that was his problem. He just liked seeing the city clean… Which, granted, those people like clean places too, but, he was just being helpful. " Scourge sighed and admitted reluctantly, " Yeah, yeah. I get it, okay? It sucks! He was the good Robotnik! I know that now. He was SO helpful to everyone but ME, " and remembered briefly how resentful he was as a kid that no matter how badly his father treated him, the kindly Kintobor never came to save him. Of course, he didn't know about any of that, but it didn't matter to him.

He continued, " It was just frustrating that he wasn't giving me a challenge. A dude that can make robots on a dime and he couldn't make any to challenge me! His Sweepbots were a joke! " " You could've just asked, " Jules commented without thinking, and Scourge looked at him in annoyance before answering, " Ask him to build a killer death robot? Somehow I don't think he'd agree to that. Even when he armed the Anti-Bunnie with a mecha suit, it was just full of crowd-control-foam instead of missiles. You think he'd humor- " " Wait a minute, hold on, a mecha suit?! " Jules said in surprise.

" Oh yeah, that sounds weird out of context, doesn't it? " he said with a laugh. They couldn't help but smile at him lightening up a little around them. He continued, " Yeah, she had NIDS all of a sudden, I think it was from the Prime Sonic throwing her in a poisoned river. But he did that to Ally too and she was fine. Guess her immune system was weaker. Anyways, the mecha suit kept her fine somehow. Weird thing is, after she got what she wanted from him, she didn't ditch him and go back to her roughhousing. She was still a bitch, like she always was to Miles, but now her complaining even goes to the people who used to be her friends! Well, it went anyways. A landslide kind of took their lives a few years ago. Only Miles survived it. I-I guess she was lucky she wasn't with them, then. She should be thankin' me, I saved her life! I mean, Boomer could never make a mecha suit that did that, he wasn't THAT nice. Kintobor was the doctor who knew how to save her. She was lucky he was nice enough to do it, and that he found her at all after I kicked her out. "

" Why'd you do that? " Jules asked in curiosity, making Scourge get worried finally as Bernie asked, " Was she being really rude to you? " There was an awkward silence and Scourge said, " Well, yeah, actually, but that was nothing new for her. " " To your girlfriend? " Jules asked him.

" Yeah, definitely! She even said she was just ' the slut ' I replaced her with as a ' consolation prize. ' But that's not the only reason I did it. Really, it was just because of the NIDS. I-It was DEPRESSING, okay?! She was just sitting there, the clock ticking away, constantly complaining. I was sick of it! She was never exactly nice to any of us anyways, she was the least favorite of the gang! And again, Boomer couldn't do nothin' to help, and either I could've brought her to Kintobor myself – SOMEHOW, despite the force field keeping my gang out of his city, and NO way to contact him – or she could've gone to look for him herself _anyways_. Yeah, I get it, okay, the first would've been the nicer option. But I'm NOT ' nice, ' and I had no idea where to take her or what to do in the first place. Anythin' you wanna say?! "

There was a brief silence before Bernie said looking stunned, " We haven't said anything! " Scourge said bitterly while staring at the table below him, " Yeah, but you were thinking it, I bet. " Jules replied trying to be as tactful as he could with him, " Okay, granted, but that doesn't mean we've, you have nothing to worry about. You obviously _aren't_ _proud_ of how you handled her because if you were, you'd be bragging about it. " Scourge looked stunned at hearing that. Was he right? He thought, " _I never thought of it that way before._ "

Then he stammered defensively, " N-No, no, it was just that, I was just annoyed that you'd be nagging me later for it. She's a bitch, I know she had it coming. " He felt the need to make an excuse for himself again at feeling the pressure of oncoming judgment from the annoyed-looking parents, and said, " Whether I did something to help or not, the end result would've been the same. He still found her, didn't he? And you know, that wouldn't have ever happened if I just kept things going the way they were, she'd have just _stayed put_ in the _castle_ not even _thinking_ that he'd ever help her. Why WOULD she expect that? And why would I? The thought never even occurred to me. We all thought she was screwed! I'm, I… What, she WAS a jerk! What do you want me to do, apologize to her? With her big hunking suit of armor? She'd just immobilize me in foam the instant she saw me! "

Bernie said with a shrug, " You could at least write her a letter. " Scourge replied nonchalantly, " Ah, it wouldn't be possible anyway, I got Moebius removed from my teleporter as an option months ago… " and since he figured they'd ask, he reluctantly explained, " Can't let my little girl go there out of curiosity and see people burning me in effigy. It'd just create a whole can of worms. " " Wait, which, oh, right, " Bernie replied to the word Moebius, and he complained,

" I meant Moebius with an ' e. ' Like, after the ' o? ' That happens all the time. Sometimes I wish I named it somethin' else. I thought it up on the spot. Better than living in the shadow of the Prime Mobius. It's better than that! No matter what those Prime Zoners think. They call MY zone twisted, but it's the safest zone of them all with the kind of ' Robotnik ' it's got instead… So are we done? "

Jules asked calmly, " Are you? I mean, is there anything else to tell us? " Scourge sighed, not because he was regretful, but because he wasn't looking forward to them being annoyingly disapproving or nervous afterwards, or even gasping because of what he'd admit. " Where do I begin? Well, I switched the Prime Antoine with Patch for a year, " he said, wanting to put off telling them that he destroyed a few islands.

" Patch? " Jules commented in confusion wondering if that was his Antoine, and Bernie questioned him, " Why, though? Aside from ' for the fun of it, ' I mean. " At first, Scourge commented with a sense of humor, " Aw, you took my excuse! " and then explained, " Really, though, Patch tried to kill me. A LOT. He even threw a knife at me once! And by that point, I was used to that kind of thing and wasn't even intimidated! " " Are you sure? I'd be a nervous wreck! One of my own friends trying to kill me! " Bernie exclaimed, looking genuinely worried about him.

" N-Nah, I was fine. Most of the time. It just got frustrating after a while, so I got rid of him so he wouldn't finally get a clue and try to kill me in my sleep. By the way, his patch USED to be just for show. The reason it's not anymore is that he tried to kill me and I finally stood up for myself. Every time he tried, I was either too fast for him or his aim sucked so hard it's like he wasn't even trying to hit, " Scourge said casually with a smile. Then he thought with his hand on his chin looking away, " _Or Miles was messing with his aim with his electricity-controlling powers subconsciously,_ " remembering that the kid could control the electricity in people's bodies, as he had demonstrated with him as a Freedom Fighter. " Were you ever hurt? "

That sentence briefly stunned him, taking him right out of his thoughts, because he had never heard that kind of expression of concern in his mother's voice before. Neither of them looked happy at hearing that he had taken Patch's eye out, they winced at hearing it in fact, but it wasn't enough to stop them from being concerned about Scourge's well-being. " Did he ever seriously injure you? Send you to the hospital? " Now Jules was worried about him.

Looking at them like they had two heads, he wasn't sure how to even respond to that. Instead of them immediately interrogating him about how what he did affected Antoine and the consequences of his little prank, they were concerned for his well-being. He blinked a few times trying to keep his eyes from watering again. " N-No, it's fine. I got lucky… " he said in astonishment, before admitting just to see how they'd react, " Well, he did punch me down the stairs once, but all I got from it were bruises. Miles helped me up, but I didn't really need it. The sweet kid, he insisted on checking me all over after that to see if I needed any help. He couldn't be any less like him. "

Eventually, the anticipation was something he couldn't take anymore and he cut straight to admitting, being as casual as he could moving his fingers along the table staring at it, " Well, Antoine was a better substitute than I thought, as depressing as he was sometimes. He seemed like a wuss, but he did what he was told and fought pretty hard. I guess he had a lot of stress to work out, but he still held back from ' dirty ' tricks like the nut shot. Then Sonic must have gotten him home after figuring Patch out, and I found out what Patch had been doin' over there all that time. Last I checked on him, he was sucking up to the king, scheming and worming his way into his good graces. The next thing I knew, he was tellin' me he put him in a coma! "

Bernie gasped, and he continued, " He poisoned him and Antoine's old man, using way more on him so he probably didn't make it. And he tried to marry Sally to get to the throne, and was gonna off her brother when he showed up to take it. See, I'm not the only one who does evil things! And I never did anything like that! 'Sides, poisoning sounds boring and lame, I'd rather win a beatdown instead. At least then I'm doing something thrilling and enjoying the impact of my fist with a face! He was just being a coward!... " Realizing he was digging himself deeper and not exactly proving to them that he wouldn't have done the same thing, he continued,

" I didn't _know_ he'd _do_ any of those things! I thought for sure when I sent him there, he'd just be ruining Antoine's reputation, breaking the law and stuff like he always did, and my plan was that he'd send himself to jail with his own stupidity. But he didn't even beat up criminals. I guess it was better for me that he kept his cover up instead of making them suspicious and getting sent home early – especially with that scar on his face, I CAN'T believe everyone bought it was him with that! Antoine leaves, he shows up with a scar looking like it's been there for years, and those idiots didn't get suspicious of it? Really? I mean, they already met Patch! Ridiculous. So are you gonna yell at me now? "

Jules reluctantly said, " No. While you are responsible for a lot, while you have a lot to answer for, all you were trying to do there was protect yourself from him. He might have _killed_ you by now, if you hadn't done that! " while his wife looked concerned and nervous. Scourge continued, " Yeah, but I didn't have to send him to Mobius. The opportunity just presented itself when he tried to send ME there, 'cause I guess he finally realized he was too incompetent to ice me. I _had_ to _switch_ Antoines so the zone cops wouldn't realize anything had changed – somehow THEY didn't notice the scar thing, either. I was making Antoine wear a fake scar with make-up to hide it, but Patch never did anything to try to hide his real one. Sending him there was just a prank on a whim, I could've sent him to a prison by dragging him there with my super speed, or a dungeon to mess with him for as long as I wanted, but the opportunity was too good to pass up, and you know me, I'm impulsive. " He thought looking annoyed, " _Or you know Sonic._ "

Bernie reasoned, " So you could've put him in a dungeon and, tortured, him, or even killed him outright, but after all that time, you just sent him to another zone instead? Did you ever, _do_ that to him? Did you ever try to, try to kill him back? " Scourge replied, " If I did, he wouldn't have lived for long. Super speed, remember? I-I just held back for Miles, that's all. The kid would've been traumatized if he saw me kill someone in front of him. I kept telling Patch that he can't be trying to do that to me in front of him, but he never listened. " Jules said without thinking, " So that ' prank ' was more of a mercy. "

Scourge heard what he said, saw them smiling at him, and looked upset before getting annoyed again, and told them to prove himself right, " I destroyed a few islands, ya hate me now? " They gasped, but had to remind themselves to stay calm and keep their disapproval of him subtle, as it would only make things worse. Suddenly they were very grateful that they were the only customers left in the restaurant; the others had quietly fled the minute they heard his fists bang on a table, and they had only noticed their absence by now. Jules took a deep breath in and out before asking in annoyance, " Okay, why'd you do _that?_ "

Scourge replied, " You're asking why? Not tryin' to h… " confused that he wasn't just yelling at him, or worse. He interrupted himself clearing his throat awkwardly, and explained, " Well, with Coconut Island, that's the place Miles was bullied on until he met me. To put it LIGHTLY. I could go on for days about all the sick ways he was treated, but I'll just leave it at this… they did NOT like his extra tail. And they made him the way he is today. Just thinking about all those bullies makes me angry, it always did, and I promised that I'd make them all pay, because for years, they just got away with it! So when I became king, I made an example out of 'em. I told the world what they did, exposed their crimes, and blew 'em up. I thought Miles would be happy! I was doing him a favour! But instead he just looked depressed. He was smirking right up until the button was pressed. I guess he was trying to enjoy it, but for some reason, he couldn't. I just don't get it, though, if anyone deserved it, it was monsters like them! A few of them even trapped him in their houses for months and tortured him! So what'd I do _wrong?_ "

FN Bernie and Jules looked worried and serious the entire time he was telling him all of that, both horrified at the careless act of destruction and at the way that ' sweet kid ' was bullied. Eventually, they realized that he was genuinely confused about why what he did was wrong, and needed someone to explain it to him. Jules explained in a matter-of-fact tone,

" Well, first off, it's possible that some people who had nothing to do with Miles' mistreatment had moved to that island in the time that he was gone. So those would've been innocent people. There's also the likely possibility that babies were born in that time. " Scourge's pupils shrank at hearing that as his expression went from bored at the nagging to serious. " It can never be that simple! " he complained bitterly hitting the table and looking away with his hand on his chin, and muttered with frustration, " Why'd you have to go and tell me that? N-Not like I care, of course! " He couldn't help it, as hearing about babies reminded him of Phoebe when she was one, though he would've reacted the same way regardless, as even he had standards.

They saw right through it, as he lied no better than Sonic did. Then Jules explained, " It's also possible that some of Miles' bullies moved out of the island while he was gone. You never know. So chances are, not only did some innocent people lose their lives for nothing, but you didn't even punish everyone involved, and it would be really complicated to try and track down everyone who moved away and find them one by one. And of course, any immigration data on the island would've been destroyed. "

Scourge sighed in exasperation with his ears slightly drooping, unable to argue against it. Even if the data was put on the internet, he couldn't go back there now. He replied reluctantly, leaning his head on his hand, " Okay, okay, I get it… It was pointless either way. Miles was miserable afterwards. Maybe he _knew!_ He is a _genius_ after all! Besides, pressing a button is unsatisfying! It wasn't like I was spindashing through the whole village destroying it myself! " They caught him smiling in excitement by the final sentence, and after an awkward silence, Jules deadpanned, " I guess this is where the other island comes in. "

Scourge admitted, " Same thing, same reasons, just a different zone. And I bet that Tails wouldn't be happy if I told him, either. I'm not gonna lie and pretend I didn't have fun with that, but compared to smashing robots that give me a challenge, or destroying whole oil rigs and refuelling stations and communication towers, a village is a joke. It got repetitive after a while, and they all screamed and ran instead of telling me how great I am. Of course, it was fun, giving those bullies what they deserve, but what did destroying that place GET me? Nothing. If anything, it tired me out. "

There was a silence as the parents of Detective Sonic let it all sink in, trying to look on the bright side once again by seeing the good in him; he at least admitted that it felt hollow and unsatisfying afterwards, even if he never once admitted guilt or regret. They were reading between the lines, mainly with his unusually nervous behaviour as he was trying to justify his actions to people he shouldn't have been intimidated of at all. Unless… Jules looked sad again and asked him, " Did you think we were going to hurt you for admitting any of this? Is that why you were nervous? "

Scourge looked stunned again, before stammering, " N-N-No, you wouldn't get away with that and you know it! I just wasn't looking forward to being, nagged or glared at. Not like I should care. " He then called out, " Am I gonna get any service here?! " hitting the table, realizing at last that he hadn't gotten his chili dogs yet. He muttered while staring at the windows, " What are they doin', takin' their smoke break? "

Trying to change the subject, Jules asked, " We don't hate you, if that's what you're thinking. So what did you do after you got bored of being a king? Did you go straight to exploring the multiverse, defeating Robotniks, or was there something in between? " Scourge appeared unhappy, and reluctantly admitted, " Some fights with Sonic. Then prison. " " With Sonic? " Bernie asked.

" Oh, yeah. Prime Sonic and his buddies. I roped my old gang into it, and THEY ended up being roped into turning traitor, no thanks to Miles conspiring with the Prime Zoners. I fought as hard as I could, I even turned super at one point, but eventually Sonic tricked me, and sent me to the interdimensional clink. For six months on end… And to say the prisoners weren't kind to me would be an understatement. I almost knew how Miles felt. I-I guess that's why I ended up forgiving him. Hard not to feel sorry for someone when you know their pain. They even called me a mutant too, sometimes, since I turned green through a mutation from a giant Chaos Emerald. When they weren't calling me _Snot_. " His voice cracked at the end, and he felt his face heating up. He was about to whisper threatening them if they ever called him Snot themselves, but Bernie hugged him before he could get the words out of his mouth.

As he tried to adjust himself to the fact that he was being hugged by her again, she reassured him, " It's okay, honey, it's okay. We'll forgive you. It's all in the past. " He returned the hug to enjoy it more as Jules agreed, " Exactly. You're never going to do most of those things again. I suppose you might destroy some more islands for the same reason, but hopefully that won't happen now that there's better things to destroy. No matter what, you're still our son. And, if you'll let us… " he put his hand on his shoulder as Bernie let him go, and he said, " We'll try to be the parents yours never were. We promise… Aren't you curious at least? "

After a brief silence, Scourge dried his face as quickly and subtly as he could, looking away, and said with a nervous smile, " Yeah, I'm always curious about stuff… Okay, just to prove you wrong. Let's see how it goes, and I can enjoy it while it lasts. " He said with a grin, " And if it'll go belly-up, that's FUTURE Me's problem! " Jules put his arm around him saying, " That's the spirit, champ! " and that was the cue to the restaurant to bring him some fresh chili dogs at last, at which point he was too caught up in the moment to really question why they were so late. " Now, why don't you tell us about your time with Miles? " Bernie asked with a smile as they were given their chili dogs at last. " Alright, alright. But it's a long story. "


	19. Chapter 17: Fleetway Tails' Revenge

After taking out the Fleetway Robotnik in his zone-hopping, Scourge's response to meeting Grimer was, " You're the weirdest looking Snively I've ever seen. I'll make this quick. " Wanting to brag about his accomplishment taking down the major villains of an alternate Mobius, Scourge eventually came to meet that zone's alternate Tails by a lake in Jade Hill Zone. The two got to talking, starting out with Tails nervously saying to his displeasure, " Sonic, is this a new transformation? A new evil super form? "

Scourge replied, " Huh, YOUR Sonic has an evil super form, too? Maybe he's not as much of a self-righteous goody-goody who thinks he's better than everyone. I'm Scourge the Hedgehog, NOT Sonic. I get that a lot. " " Well, actually he DOES think he's better than everyone, but how are you not Sonic? You have Sonic's voice! And face, and body shape, and scent! How could you not be him? " Fleetway Tails replied after looking bitter for the first sentence and confused after that.

" Well, I'm NOT! I used to be an alternate universe Sonic, but a little sample from the Master Emerald made all the difference! I've been the most badass Sonic around ever since, " Scourge explained, looking annoyed at first and smirking at the end. Before Fleetway Tails could react to what he said by asking which Emerald he was talking about, Scourge looked surprised and asked, " Wait, is that a bruise? Who did that to you? " pointing to the purplish mark on Tails' arm.

Tails immediately looked uncomfortable, and the brief silence was all he needed, as before he could lie about it being the expected answer, Scourge said looking serious with a worried tone, " It has to be something other than a robot if you didn't answer me right away! It's someone you wanna cover for, isn't it?! It's Sonic, isn't it?! " his cynical paranoia against humanity paying off as he easily jumped to the conclusion he wanted to believe in. Looking scared of the obvious criminal, Tails stammered with his hands in a placating gesture while flying a little, " N-N-No! No! Don't hurt him! He just did it on an impulse because I was especially stupid that day. He doesn't usually hit me, just call me pixel-brain. "

Scourge exclaimed, " Pixel-brain?! You sure that was Sonic?! That sounds like one of your bullies! I've been all over the multiverse and no Sonic would treat a Tails like that! Well, it sounds like he thinks he's gonna be another Evil Sonic. Well, I don't want him cramping my style! There's only one Evil Sonic if anything and that's me! " Tails exclaimed while flying a little above the ground to keep his distance from him, " Evil? You're not gonna try to destroy him, are you?! "

Scourge stopped in his tracks and crossed his arms looking at him. Being reminded of the Tails that defended Robotnik for raising him, Scourge asked with a mixture of concern and outrage, " What are you doing defending that guy? What kind of a sicko Sonic would treat a cute little kid that way? What, just because you're a mutant? No offense. You're a cool flying fox and that's not good enough for him?! You're only defending him from Stockholm Syndrome! Do you know what that is? "

" Yeah, I'm not stupid! No matter what people still think. But he didn't kidnap me, " Tails said defensively, with what Scourge only saw as a cute pout. All the while, Tails never failed to notice how nice and considerate Scourge was being of him, even calling him cute as a big contrast to Sonic, and he didn't like the implications of the idea that Evil Sonic would've been nicer to him than his own Sonic ever was. He was stunned at Scourge calling him cool, and remembered that Sonic had told him he wasn't cool straight to his face.

Scourge explained looking worried, " It's what happens when you're forced to be with someone for a while and you start to see a lack of abuse as kindness, because you start trying to look on the bright side to comfort yourself, and see positive treatment wherever you wanna see it. I've been through it before, and I stood up for myself the minute I got strong enough to. He _'only_ ' hit you once, never mind all the times he insulted you like dirt, so that makes him a good person? No, it doesn't. He's still the worst Sonic in the multiverse! So I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind! " He ran off in a green and black blur before Tails could try to reason with him some more, leaving him shouting, " But he's a hero! " and flying after him.

When he confronted the Fleetway Sonic, he punched him in the leg immediately while running at him, stopped in front of him and shouted, " So you like hitting two-tailed foxes, do ya?! Well how do YOU like it? " Sonic landed on the grass lying on his back grunting from the attack, and Scourge stood over him with his hands on his hips saying bitterly, " You're a disgrace to Sonics everywhere! " Sonic looked alarmed from hearing that as he stood up from the painful blow that left him in too much pain to run, and said while overwhelmed with everything he had to reply to,

" How'd you know about that?! If you think that's a regular event for me, you're wrong! What's a punk in a leather jacket with fangs like you doing caring about someone anyways? You're obviously evil! And what's the ' Sonics ' thing about? Metamorphia, is that you again? Or a fake Sonic created by Eggman again? "

Scourge, used to those confused accusations from Sonics who didn't recognize him, explained casually, " I'm you from the Anti-Mobius, a universe where everyone's morality is reversed! Well, ALMOST everyone. My own Tails had _other_ ideas. I changed my appearance with a Master Emerald to look more unique, and after taking over my planet and seeing how BORING running a country was, I eventually got myself a new mission; to find every single Robotnik and Snively, and kill 'em all! And spare me the moral lecture. I'm gonna beat you at your own game, you and every Sonic out there, and I've already taken down hundreds of them by this point! Which makes me hundreds of times better than you. "

After Fleetway Sonic stared at him in stunned confusion trying to take in all that information, wondering at some point who Snively was, Scourge said looking serious, " But that's not the point. I've never heard of a Sonic treating his Tails the way you do. You're the biggest bully of a brother I've ever seen! So I figured you deserved a punch for it. You're just lucky I don't kill you outright for that, now that your planet no longer needs you. I'm done with your Robotnik, AND his weird-looking green Snively, so you can just pack up and go home. "

Sonic went into denial, unable to believe what he just heard, and said, " No way, you gotta be kiddin' me! You gotta be flippin' KIDDING me! You killed Robotnik and Grimer, you stole my victory, and you think I bully Tails?! This has gotta be some kinda joke! " Scourge rolled his eyes and said with a condescending smile, " Tons of Sonics have acted like this. They don't take bein' upstaged well. I just learned to take it in stride, they figure out I'm not lying eventually. Just check Robotnik's security footage if you don't believe me. "

Fleetway Sonic shook his head, and replied bitterly, " Well, even if you did do it, it's still wrong! And _nobody_ decks Sonic the Hedgehog and gets away with i- " Scourge immediately hit him in the leg again predicting what he'd do, and it was just when Tails flew up to them from behind that he said, " I'm not gonna kill you, 'cause a wuss like you's not worth it. A-And it's DEFINITELY not because I wanna humor Tails or anything. I'm a rebel who plays by my OWN rules, and I can come and ice ya at super speed any time I want, especially in the middle of the night. My problem is the zone cops, that's all. If I thought they'd let me get away with it, I would. I'm just waitin' for a monster like you to go villain from boredom so I can get the A-okay to beat you. "

As Tails stopped and landed beside him in confusion, Scourge continued, " Where do you get off treatin' a little kid that way anyhow? He's supposed to be your brother! You raise him, don't you?! You think you're so damn cool? Well, he's fast AND can FLY! I'd say that makes him cooler than YOU! Some lame bully that treats him like garbage out of nowhere! "

Sonic glared at Tails and said, " Nice goin', dummy, you got me in trouble! Do you WANT me to snap at you again? " Scourge punched him in the face and kicked his leg immediately for that, making him fall to the ground crying out in pain as Tails cringed, not sure whose side he should be on. Fleetway Sonic said looking intimidated, " I was just saying! "

Scourge scoffed and said bitterly, " Yeah, just like my pops did, yeah right! " Tails and Sonic cringed at the revelation Scourge slipped out, and he was so angry at the moment that he didn't even notice the impact of what he just revealed, continuing, " It wasn't even Tails' fault, he just didn't answer me right away! Sue me for bothering to ask about his bruise, because I'm a Sonic who actually gives a damn! " Tails looked depressed with his head hung low and his eyes downcast, which Sonic noticed and looked worried at before yelling, " You're turning him against me, you jerk! " and starting a fight with him. Since Sonic had started it, Scourge felt fully justified in responding with some punches and kicks of his own, hoping that if the zone cops were watching through a security monitor, they'd understand.

To his surprise, though, he started feeling dissatisfied after a while with fighting a Sonic, feeling increasingly melancholic, worried and stressed out as the fight went on, stopping when Sonic was all bruised and injured from fighting him. He was frustrated with himself and didn't understand why he was hesitating, because part of him was fully on board with it and thought he had it coming, while the other part started bothering him, saying in his thoughts in a voice that sounded like Sonic, " _What if the zone cops see this? What if that Tails breaks down crying from you injuring or killing him, or even has an out-and-out-breakdown because of it? What if he feels guilty about how he's just watching you doing it feeling helpless and he spends his life blaming himself for Sonic's death? What would your daughter and Fiona and your new gang of ' Freedom Fighters ' think if they found out about this? Would you be kicked out? Would they lose all respect for you? And is this even what you really want? You're just mad, lashing out, not really having fun and smiling at all, and this isn't making him a nice person, it's not solving the problem you want!_ "

Finally Scourge snapped at the nagging in his head and threw Sonic to the ground from on top of him, shouting, " Forget it, this isn't fun anymore! " angry with himself. He stood up, crossed his arms and muttered to the confused and stunned Sonic, " Doing nothing but the same repetitive attacks over and over again is getting boring. If I'm gonna be doin' that, I'd rather be fighting Robotniks, " making up an excuse as he let Tails help Sonic up.

Sonic and Tails saw him look depressed briefly in deep thought, and Scourge muttered, " What happened to me? " still trying to get used to that increasingly hard to ignore conscience as he walked away past some bushes, getting a zone-link generator out of his leather jacket. Still simmering with bitterness from being humiliated like that, and only not going after him because he was smart, Sonic thought, " _It's a bad day when your evil twin calls YOU out on being too evil for him,_ " not being sure what to think of the accusations. " _Was I really a bully? I'd expect that more of him!_ "

After Scourge left with his Warp Ring generator, Sonic started walking away, and snarked, " Thanks for the lack of help. Come on, let's go, pixel-brain, before your bad-mouthing me gets me into even more trouble. " After a brief moment where he walked from being too hurt to run and noticed that he wasn't hearing Tails walk behind him, he turned around in annoyance and confusion, and asked the glaring child simmering with resentment, " Hey, did you hear me, dummy? Let's g-OOF! " A punch in the face, and he was immediately thrown to the ground. He laid on the ground aching even more and couldn't believe what was happening, staring at him in shock and disbelief.

" STOP calling me that! I'm SICK of it! " Fleetway Tails shouted at him with his fists clenched, feeling about ready to explode, and as he let loose tackling him and letting a flurry of punches come to his face, an idea came to his head, as he remembered one of the latest inventions Tekno recovered from Eggman's base; a forget-me-now, a ray gun device that would erase a person's memories of the last few hours. If he used that, he could finally release all the pent-up resentment he had against Sonic standing up for himself, and completely escape from the consequences he feared so much. All he needed were a few minutes to let it all out before it would explode out of him far worse at a much less convenient time. That thought reduced the anxiety in him immensely and made him stop holding back.

Not wanting to outright injure Tails, Fleetway Sonic grabbed his wrists and held them away from his face, saying with a serious expression and a panicked voice, " Tails, what are you DOING?! I'm already hurt! What, did Robuttnik brainwash you? "

" Of course you'd say that! You think you're always right and nothing could ever be YOUR fault! " Tails shouted while feeling like he might never learn his lesson, glaring at him with hatred flaring up in his eyes. Sonic hated to admit it, but he was intimidated. After Sonic sat up with him while saying seriously, " Glad we understand each other- " Tails smacked him with his tails to get him to let his wrists go.

The two of them stood up, with Sonic saying resentfully while walking towards him menacingly, " You're making it REAL hard for me to hold back against you, pal. Would Amy approve of you treating me like this? Don't you like heroes of Mobius?! " trying to guilt him at the end while sincerely believing that he was in the right. Tails briefly looked sad at that.

Tails shouted, " You're wrong, Sonic! I'm not letting you talk because I know what you're gonna say! And I won't be manipulated by your _hurtful words!_ Not now, and _never_ again! " Sonic rolled his eyes thinking he was being melodramatic, and snarked not taking him seriously, " Grow up, you pixel-brained dum- " " SHUT UP! " Fleetway Tails shouted, slapping his face in response with his eye twitching at the familiar insults that he dared to use again at a time like that.

Sonic looked stunned staring at him with his hand on his cheek, wondering if this was all a dream or simulation by Robotnik, or a fake Tails robot made to fool him, and while he was lost in thought trying to piece together what was really going on, Tails gave him a uppercut to the chin saying, " THIS is for pretending you were DEAD just to prank me! " hitting him at the first word. He would make sure to hit all the best weak spots, starting with that one.

Sonic landed on the ground after briefly being sent upwards from the attack and then stomped on in the worst of places, and while he didn't admit it right away, he couldn't deny that he had a good point for being mad at him for that. It was the worst thing he ever did to him, and possibly to anyone, but all that he thought in response ended up being, " _But that was just a JOKE! Pixel-brain knows I'm just pulling his leg! Right?_ " Before he could verbalize an excuse while standing up from the attack, Fleetway Tails punched him in the ribs and said bitterly, " THIS is for leaving me behind on so many missions, and being condescending of me _all_ the _time!_ "

As Sonic bent down a little grimacing from the blow, Tails immediately punched his face after the last sentence to send him into the tree behind him, while saying angrily, " THIS is for all the times you doubted me making fun of me, and never believed me when I tried to tell you about my own adventures! "

Finally getting to the best part in his eyes, he smirked briefly in anticipation saying quietly, " And THIS, " before spinning around with his tails hitting Sonic with every word, yelling, " is for EVERY time you called me Pixel-Brain! " Sonic screamed while spinning around from Tails doing so earlier, and stood there dizzy afterwards, before Tails kicked him in the left shin saying, " Or DUMMY! " and kicked the right shin to make him fall into a sitting position saying, " Or ugly! " reminding him of the time he said that his face was ugly on Angel Island. Then he kicked him in the upper leg saying, " Or said that I wasn't cool! "

He stood over him looking irritated and added, " Even your evil twin called me cool, even HE's nicer to me than you! Maybe you ARE the worst Sonic! " Realizing how much trouble he'd gotten himself into with all his insults, Sonic exclaimed looking panicked, " Okay, okay, I get it! I didn't know you were so sensitive! "

Tals ranted, " You don't have to be sensitive to get fed up with years of abuse! There's only so many insults a guy can take! Oh, but I know what you wanna say. ' Can't you take a joke? You're just being a brat throwing a tantrum, can't you see that I'm always right? Stop clowning around, pixel-brain, and being an idiot trying to stand up for yourself. ' NO! " He smacked his chest with his tails one last time for the last word.

" Okay, maybe you're not as dumb as you look, because that's just what I was thinking, " he admitted, one of his eyes closed from a black eye. Tails said angrily, " Thanks for the backhanded compliment. It's all I can expect from you! I _have_ to do this, Sonic, because if I don't let it all out now, it'll explode out of me even worse at the worst possible moment! At least here we're in a field we freed of badniks, and nobody can see us. "

" You mean there's still some anger left? I thought you got it all spent on me! " Fleetway Sonic said looking worried. " Don't try to play the sympathy card, you bully! " Tails retorted bitterly. Sonic replied sadly, " Who's the bully here? I was already limping home before you snapped at me! And sure, I've insulted you a lot, but those punches HURT! I'm surprised you learned how to hit so hard. It's like it's almost at sonic speed. " Tails smirked in a more harmless, confident way, proud of himself for proving to him that he'd gotten stronger, and said, " You're right, I HAVE learned to hit like you, " briefly worrying that Sonic would think he was agreeing with him and clarifying himself later, and continued,

" Because I wanna prove that I can take down badniks on my own! But every time I do, no matter how many times I accomplish something on my own, I never feel like anyone would believe me without witnessing it for themselves, and sometimes I couldn't even BELIEVE that I did it on purpose! That I got Trogg to melt his invincible ice body with his fire-shooting from saying your name twice, or used the microputer to keep chemical ice from melting, by accident! You got me thinking I couldn't do anything on my own and that I was lucky I could survive my own adventures! You think I was just hiding in those times like a coward! You act like even destroying three badniks in a cave is too much for me, even when I showed you the evidence! And you actually got me believing you were right to think so little of me, that EVERYONE was right to think that of me! "

After Sonic looked completely confused at hearing about Trogg the enchanter king, Tails shouted, " You make me feel like I'm nothing! " giving him one last slap in the face with tears escaping his eyes at last. He ranted with a breaking voice, " Every time I was whisked away on an adventure, whether it was in the Nameless Zone or with Sab's flock of Freedom Fighters, I kept wishing you were there because I had no confidence in myself! I didn't know what to do and had to improvise or luck out, and it took a while for me to start thinking for myself and being useful on my own! " He shouted quickly, " Who do you think made me that way, _pixel-brain?_ It was you! "

He rubbed his eyes and wiped his face of the tears as fast as he could, feeling humiliated and angry at how it was making him look weak and pathetic when he wanted it to be more of an epic moment for himself, only for it to be ruined by the tears. " Okay, I'm sorry! Stop crying! " Sonic exclaimed, making him gasp and look at the less familiar worried expression on his face through the white fog of his own tears.

Sonic put his hands on his shoulders and told him, " Calm down, little buddy, shake yourself out of it! Deep breaths. Just, tell me what those adventures were like! " getting another one his many clever ideas at the end because he knew Tails would be distracted by those long explanations. It was a miracle he managed to make himself apologize to someone who had attacked him so much, even if he realized he was in the right and made a mess of his friendship.

Tails was stunned. Even after everything he did in his outburst, Sonic still bothered to apologize, and as a result, Tails willed himself to take the risk and hug him, which caused Sonic to hug back awkwardly, making Tails savor the rare affection and sigh with a smile. " Well… Okay, but it's a long story, and you have to promise me you'll believe me, " Tails said sadly, wanting to forgive him, while not looking forward to telling him about his letters to the Nameless Zone. Sonic let go, put his hands on his shoulders, reassured, " I promise, _Tails_. And see, I'm not callin' you by _that_ anymore. " " Okay… well, it all started when I sent some letters to my family… "

Sonic's reaction to all of his explanations was a lot better than he'd expected. He was worried about Tails from hearing how much trouble he'd gotten himself into, and complimented him for making it out of it, and every time Tails recounted to him that he had wished he was there, his heart ached in sympathy as he wished that he had been. At one point, he finally said in response, " If I HAD been there, you wouldn't have been able to prove that you could do all those things on your own. Maybe it was helping you realize you could be more independent, instead of needing me for every little thing. You figured out a lot on your own after a while, I mean, going into that robot to break it while shrunk? That was genius! You've come a long way from me having to tell you to do even the simplest of things. Though maybe I didn't HAVE to tell you and you knew all along, and were just doubting yourself too much to take the initiative. If I'm, to blame for that in any way, I'm sorry about it. "

He then took a bit of a deep breath as he felt his eyes water just from saying the last sentence, and felt uncomfortable about how much of a softie he had been acting like recently, before admitting, " Okay, so I'm being a softie right now. But it's better than being a grade-A jerk ' bully. ' You're a nice kid, it takes a lot to make you snap like that. And that ' a lot ' was _me_. So you're not in trouble for doing all that. I, if I met someone who had been acting like I had for so long, I'd say he deserved the same thing. "

He ruffled Tails' hair playfully for once and said, " But TALK about it next time! Don't bottle everything up and brood around! " Tails giggled enjoying it once he realized what he was doing, confused at first about the unfamiliar and rare affection.


	20. Chapter 18

In the next zone Scourge would warp to, Snively was going after Tails in a mecha, but to his surprise, a green hedgehog used a spindash to trash it and made him fly out of it. He grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and complained with his face threateningly close to his, " That was REAL nice of you to be separate from Robotnik! Would've been way faster for me if you were with him! " Then the predictable happened, as he followed through with his usual plan of getting rid of every Robotnik and Snively he found. Tails was long gone by the time he was done, having run into the forest without even seeing him, but since Scourge had already seen him, he decided to go follow him out of curiosity to see if he was okay, and potentially get some praise for saving his life.

After going through an empty village, Scourge walked into a lab, and found that planet's version of Tails. He thought, " _He looks awful…_ " His hair was messy, his fur had some dirt and grease stains on it, he was wearing a lab coat with the same stains, and when he turned to face him, Scourge could see that he was unusually skinny, and his eyes behind the clear, large goggles were bloodshot, and had bags and stress lines under them. He gasped and hugged him immediately, and exclaimed, " Finally, someone to talk to! I've been alone on this planet for months! "

While he knew Scourge looked like a criminal, he was too lonely to care. Scourge instinctively returned the hug to get the most enjoyment out of it, and then asked him in curiosity, " Why? And what's with all the robots in your lab? I'm new to this dimension, so I need some fillin' in here! The name's Scourge the Hedgehog, by the way. ".

Tails, after reluctantly forcing himself to let him go, told him with a smile of childlike innocence, " I'm Tails. And I only built them very recently. I've been stuck here for six months, so it was the only way I could try to stop the loneliness. But I'm not finished making the program that'll become their brains and differentiating it for each individual person yet, so my plan to repopulate the planet isn't really started yet. Normally, I just used this planet as a base for the Freedom Fighters to plan our attacks on Robotnik on Mars, but my spaceship's engine started to go critical when I was entering the Mobian atmosphere, and I barely got to jump and fly out of it before it blew up! And with it, the machine that let me contact my friends blew up too! They probably all assumed I've died and don't know they have to come looking for me! Maybe Eggman put a bomb in the spaceship to trap me here. And there's gotta be a good reason my friends haven't come back here with another spaceship! What if they all got captured or roboticized by now?! "

" Why don't you just build another spaceship? " Scourge asked. Tails said sadly, " That's what I've been doing, but it was Rotor who invented it, and it's a lot harder than I thought it was gonna be, especially without all the materials I need. I'm trapped here, and I had to resort to making robots to have any sort of company. As I said before. They're just like people, though, so it's not too bad. " Scourge asked, " So on your Mars, you don't need a spacesuit to be able to walk around in any part of it, do you? 'Cause I plan to give that place a visit. "

Tails answered in confusion, " No, it was terraformed last millennium. What, how would you- " Scourge showed him the zone-link generator from his jacket, created a Warp Ring and explained with an excited smile, " I can get you back home to your pals, AND do what I came here for! You can activate your robots LATER, " as he pressed buttons on it to get the destination to where he wanted it. Tails gasped, looking stunned, and asked, " Is this a dream? Is this really happening? " while finding it ironic and suspicious that an obvious criminal was the one doing this for him.

Sure enough, he could see Robotnik in his lab through the Warp Ring, and Scourge lifted him into his arms, jumped through it with him, moved out of the lab at the speed of sound to get him into another building, and started the fight that'd get rid of Robotnik with the kid out of earshot.

Minutes later, he ran around at sonic speed until he eventually would find the kid he brought to the planet. He was sitting on the sidewalk of the street crying. " What's wrong? " Scourge asked in curiosity, and he told him, " I can't find them! I can't find them anywhere! " Scourge looked uncomfortable as he revealed, " Well, they're not in Robotnik's base, 'cause I searched all over there at sonic speed. W-Where's your house? Or maybe I can get you to some other friends of yours, like the Chaotix. " Tails nodded reluctantly, agreeing to be warped to them.

The Chaotix were naturally very surprised to see a green hedgehog with fangs in a leather jacket walk over to them with his arm around Tails, and he made sure to say the minute he saw them, " He needs help, " directing the attention to Tails right away. Espio still questioned him, " Wait a minute, hold on, what's he doing with a punk like you? "

As Tails looked sad and gave Mighty a hug, Scourge continued, " I was getting to that! Look, I think something happened to the Freedom Fighters when he was stuck on Mobius. Though you probably already know that, I'm not entirely filled in on everything about this dimension, " briefly flaunting his Warp Ring in front of them to prove he was from another zone.

He continued, " Tails told me his spaceship blew up from a bomb of Robotnik's and he barely flew out of it in time, and he might have done that to fake his death so he'd be trapped there. He's been alone on a planet for months, and it shows. He needs someone taking care of him, so I'm makin' an executive decision here, the NICEST among you guys is gonna look after him from now on. "

While the Chaotix felt sorry for Tails, they were very confused about his behavior. Vector asked, " So you're the one who saved him from that place with your Warp Ring, then? But why? " Scourge replied, used to making that justification by now, " He reminds me of _my_ zone's Tails, of course. The name's Scourge the Hedgehog, and _I'm_ the one who took down _Robotnik_. Go look in his base if ya don't believe me! I've taken down so many of these guys, I've lost track! "

Naturally, everyone was shocked to hear that, with Charmy saying, " Wait, what?! You what?! Do the zone cops approve of this? " Scourge looked briefly surprised and said, " I dunno, I guess. How do you know about those guys? " Charmy admitted, " I've kind of, had a past, okay? " which implied enough for him to leave it alone. Scourge replied, " Don't sweat it, kid, they probably decided to leave ya alone. You'd think if you're a zone-hopper, the zone cops would be aware of you with all their surveillance cameras everywhere. "

Then he looked resentful, and continued, " I bet they saw what Tails was going through down there and ate popcorn while watching it. " Tails gasped, and looked sad as Scourge complained resentfully,

" Those monsters. They pretend to care about protecting the multiverse, but they make a _living_ out of watching stuff happen and doing nothing. Might as well be zone ' bystanders. ' You know, the Prime Zone's Robotnik was replaced by a zone-hopper and they STILL haven't arrested the guy. " " You have no room to judge, Scourge, " Zonic said all of a sudden, startling them all as he appeared out of a portal.

He stood in front of the startled Scourge with his arms crossed and said, " Relax, we're not going after you, we're still busy with Eggman Nega and all. " He was careful not to say the wrong things and accidentally encourage him to stop what he was doing just to rebel against them; words of encouragement and praise from some of his worst enemies wouldn't be the most encouraging to the most rebellious Sonic alive.

Scourge scoffed, and complained, " Well that's a relief, but considering how much screwed-up shit happens that you do nothin' about, I think I'm justified here. Who knows how much I prevented from happening with all the Robotniks I killed? ' Evil Sonic ' or no, at least I'm no bystander. " He activated his Warp Ring as Zonic replied in annoyance, " It's called the ' policy of non-interference, ' and we have it for a reason! We have to let universes develop themselves naturally- "

" Like the time you let one of the Robotniks destroy all the Robians with a self-destruct switch, yeah. Might as well not even have surveillance cameras. Face it, man, you guys just pick and choose which villains to fight. You don't just protect the multiverse, you turned it into a reality show. I guarantee you if I was watching a monitor when some shit was goin' down, I wouldn't just stand there and watch! I'd go there and take down the people responsible and kick ass! " Scourge snarked bitterly, remembering how rough his father was with him and thinking that some zone cops must have stood there and watched it all happen. He knew that if he had seen that happen to someone, he'd furiously defend them.

He had always hated Kintobor for not adopting him with all the rumors of how his father was to him, but the zone cops with their surveillance cameras made him even angrier than that. The fact that they were police didn't help.

Zonic said unhappily, " Do you have any idea how many zone police would get themselves killed doing that? " Scourge admitted, " True, not everyone's as fast and awesome as me. But you could get away with it, same powers don't you? Plus with your ray guns and teleporters, you could catch 'em by surprise, get a free hit in and stun 'em. But no, then you'd just get fired for doing something. Are you dudes REALLY busy with zone-hoppers with every single cop 100% of the time, and never have the time for anyone else? Please. I'm not a hero, but at least when I do evil things, I know it. And there's nothing worse than a hypocrite. "

With that, he walked into the portal, which closed behind him as Zonic had to deal with suspicious glares from the Chaotix at what Scourge revealed. Predictably, he ran off at the speed of sound and used his own portal-generator to warp away, because he knew that if he didn't, he'd be in a lot of trouble.

Espio said unhappily, " Mighty, give the kid a bath, I think he needs one. " Tails sighed, and apologized, " I'm sorry I haven't been taking care of myself. I was too wrapped up in my inventing. It was the only thing getting me through that dark lonely time… " He sighed.

Occasionally, every so often, Scourge would check up on the Eggman in the Prime zone by looking through his Warp Ring portal from the open end, just to see what he was planning against his old enemy next. Normally, he would just leave dealing with him to Sonic, since he was busy with his own life. But after finding out about Eggman's Genesis Wave device from the doctor bragging about it, Scourge said with a serious expression, " OK, he just moved up on my list! "

He jumped through the portal onto Eggman, punched him into the wall and said, " The minute you threaten MY universe, it's MY problem! " Fortunately for Eggman, Sonic was there at just the right time to prevent him from killing him, getting his attention immediately saying, " Scourge?! Is the time limit up already? "  
Scourge, ignoring his brief panic at just hearing the one responsible for putting him in prison in the No Zone, reminded himself that it wasn't going to happen again, spindashed into the machine, and ranted, " That depends. He just made a doo-hickey that could destroy my zone and wipe me out of existence! And even if we destroy it now, he'll just make it again! What do you expect me to do, Sonic, because your way isn't working! And I just know your way won't include ' brainwashing him to never make a machine like this again! ' There's no more time to fool around, Sonic! It's time to end this! " both angry and afraid for himself and the ones who cared about him. He was still self-conscious about the fact that he was worried for Fiona and his daughter, and tried not to show it in his expression.

Before Scourge could turn around to threaten Eggman – as he was sneaking out of the lab and already almost out of it – Sonic exclaimed, " Wait, maybe it does! I mean, I'm not comfortable with it at all, but if it's just one little change, it's better than letting you kill him! " Scourge rolled his eyes saying sarcastically, " Because ' that'd make you just as bad as him. ' Sure. You really think you can get Rotor to do that? "

He left the room in a green and black blur, came back with Eggman tied up with wires while panicked, and said, " Not that hard, is it? Now here's what's gonna happen, Blue, if I find out you didn't come through on your end of the bargain, I'm gonna find where this dude is, and kill him. I'm not gonna be tricked that easily. There's an entire ' all of existence ' at stake here, and that INCLUDES my little girl! "

Trying to hide how proud he was of him for trying to save the multiverse, Sonic reluctantly said, " It's not a trick, I promise, " and started helping him destroy the machine with his spindash, with a big smile on his face because of that.

When the machine was reduced to pieces, Scourge used his super speed to bring a wagon over to the two of them and push the protesting Eggman onto it. He tied him to it with the wires, and said with a smirk, " Good thing we're both strong enough to move this lard. Come on, let's go! " before the two of them pulled it at super speed to the nanite city prison. After everything was said and done, Scourge smirked as if he wasn't annoyed at all, reminded Sonic that Eggman was on a time limit, and left through his portal.

Queen Sally told Fiona reassuringly with her arm around her back, " Look, I like you for who you are, but a lot of people like to judge you for the way you're dressed, and it'd be easier on you if you fixed that problem. You can still wear some black, it's your decision, but some color would help with the, comments. " After sighing and agreeing, " Alright, I was kind of missing color anyways, " Fiona was taken shopping, and eventually came home with a new purple and white jumpsuit, with black stripes for the edges, and a skull necklace. The whole time, she was worried about how Scourge would react when he saw her in less menacing clothes.

When she saw him again getting home to Queen Sally's castle, she asked with a nervous smile, " So how do I look? " He smiled fondly at seeing her and said, " Perfect! " kissed her, and added, " As usual! " proud of having a girlfriend as beautiful to him as her. She sighed in a mixture of relief and bliss, and replied,

" Good. It's not like I care what people think of me, but it's still annoying hearing people insult me for dressing like before. You know, in the badass way... I wish I could be more like you and just be carefree, not care about what people say. " Scourge's smirk briefly faltered, and he said with his arm around her, " Thanks. And you're right of course! I'm not ditchin' the leather any time soon! It looks better on me than anythin' else, and while I prefer your old get-up, it is pretty good-looking to have some color there, too. "

After Scourge had taken down a Robotnik warping to him, he was shocked to find someone he never thought he'd see again. " I found you! " He turned to the familiar female voice and gasped in horror at seeing Rosy the Rascal with a portable globepost. As Scourge backed away saying from being caught off guard, " Rosy?! How, how'd you… " she immediately laughed and started smashing up a Robotnik's base with her spiked hammer, before trying to chase him.

Scourge ran away, and smirked as he got an idea, intentionally slowing down to let her follow him while being fast enough that he'd never be caught up to, all in a successful plan to tire her out and keep her close-by.

As soon as she collapsed panting in exhaustion after all that time of chasing Scourge, he grabbed some wires and tied her up using his super speed, saying, " Super speed, remember? You don't stand a chance… "

Then he put his hand on his chain and said to the tied-up psycho, " Actually, I have a brilliant idea! That kind of violence should be used on my enemies! At the rate I'm taking down all the Robotniks, I might not get rid of them all 'till I have gray hair, but I have in front of me someone who only cares about kicking ass, as brutally as you can possibly imagine. Someone who WON'T wanna take breaks out of boredom with doing the same thing over and over again! Now, the only problem is making sure you'll only go after Robotniks and Snivelys, but I know just the guy for that. " With that, he punched her to knock her unconscious, and brought her through a portal to the dimension he called home.

The Film-Noir Rotor wasn't that enthused, saying in response in his lab, " I dunno, Scourge, brainwashing? I'm not comfortable with this. " He shifted his brown trench coat and avoided eye contact with him, focusing on his work as Rosy laid unconscious on the floor.

" You heard me, the Anti-Ring of Acorns made her a hopelessly violent nutjob! All she wants to do is attack anyone that's breathing with her spiky hammer. And Robotniks are evil, you know that! Better for her to have the best possible targets than wear herself out attacking everyone she finds. Would you rather have her have a shock collar that would shock her if she attacked the wrong people? Or rot in prison, or get the chair? That's a total waste of her hammer-smashing skills when there's millions of Robotniks out there just beggin' to get smashed, " Scourge convinced looking serious.

Then he smirked and said confidently, " Plus, there's a million different Rotors out there, so there's no point in you saying no. If you turn me down, I'll find a Rotor who won't, and if they all do, I'll get a Lien-Da to do it, she's a legionizer. " Scourge said in annoyance, and then walked over to the uneasy Rotor and put his hand on his shoulder casually with a reluctant expression at first. He continued nonchalantly,

" Look, how's about this? You make the computer chip reprogramming her brain make it so that once she's killed a certain big number of Robotniks and Snively, it makes her not violent anymore. That way, I get what I want – getting half of the work done for me – and you get an unquestionably good deed for your conscience – which is CURING Rosy so she can have a normal life. Eventually. "

He looked over at Rosy and said nervously cringing, " I mean, really, she's lucky she can take care of herself like this. At least if her violence is focused on just two people in each zone, she'll be able to think clearly and focus on getting food and stuff instead of trying to attack everything that moves. Look at her, she's all skin and bones! " demonstrating to him that at the end.

FN Rotor smiled softly and thought to himself, " _Are you actually worried about her well-being? It's not like you to intentionally try to manipulate someone, you're not nearly subtle enough for that._ " The only reason he didn't say it out loud, was because Queen Sally had advised her friends against openly insulting him or making it obvious to him that he had a conscience to his face. So instead, he nodded with a smile, saying,

" Okay, fine, I'll do it. Better than a shock collar, and better me than someone I don't trust. Get me the anesthesia. " He put Rosy on a lab bench and clarified to the confused Scourge, " You know, the sleeping gas. I've gotta keep her down so I can make a nanobot to carry the ' vigilante ' chip to her brain, and make the, incision in her skull in the first place. " He cringed at the end, wondering if he would feel uncomfortable for a long time about what he was going to do, and hoping that he'd see that the ends would justify the means.

Proud of him for agreeing to the pragmatic, greater good decision, Scourge said with a great big smile, " Thanks, Rotes! Knew I could count on you! You're actually pretty cool sometimes, " remembering the time he saw him shoot a giant ray gun he revealed he had and exclaimed excitedly in the heat of battle, " Okay, that's actually pretty COOL! "

He saw the alternate Rotor smile at him sweetly and felt awkward, saying, " D-Don't tell anyone I said that, " feeling like he was acting too much like Sonic by the last sentence. Rotor sighed and agreed, wishing he would only move past feeling uncomfortable about the more soft side to himself just because it wasn't what was expected of him with his image. He wishes he could fully be okay with the fact that being himself meant more than just being an Evil Sonic.


	21. Chapter 19

Over in Mobius-FN, there was a call for help from the people of Furville regarding some robots threatening the local gym, and since Detective Sonic was already busy with a Mercian mission with the rest of his Freedom Fighters, Queen Sally sent the team's resident wild card Scourge to help out saying that it was an excuse for him to smash some robots. After all, unlike Sonic, he didn't care if the cause he was fighting for was really minor as long as he got to cause some destruction. The same went for Fiona for the most part, but she soon became busy and distracted by something else and had to let him go there alone. He ran to the village at the speed of sound in a green blur, and viciously destroyed the various gray robots as a spinning green buzzsaw. He uncurled among the wreckage of the robots looking proud of himself in front of the watching crowd, and asked, " Ready to applaud? "

However, it took him a second to recognize the familiar looks of apprehension and disgust on their faces as if he was back on Moebius, and he quickly got annoyed, complaining, " Hey, I just saved your LIVES, you jerks, don't you care? " One of the gym-goer civilians, a fox Mobian in the appropriately gym-wear gray T-shirt and shorts, pointed out, " I-I would've felt safer being saved by Sonic, actually, " and the skunk girl beside him added, " Yeah, and not a punk who wishes he could smash us, too. " Scourge knew she was right, glaring with his arms crossed, and a bear Mobian pointed out, " You may have done something good, but you just did it to destroy. Who knows how long before you get your hands on something that could let you destroy even more, and go crazy with it? You can't blame us for not trusting you! "

" I took down _Robotnik_ , ya ungrateful- " Scourge complained, and the final person in the circle around him, a bear woman with a pink bow and purple clothes, replied, " You just like killing. And you did it to brag about it, not to help people out. Once a criminal, always a criminal. You can tell by the leather! "

Then the last of the robots revealed themselves, breaking down the wall in another room, and it was a large one with a flamethrower attached to it. With Scourge at the breaking point, he exclaimed, " Screw you haters! You know what?! " and spindashed to slice the robot apart, grabbed the flamethrower and yelled, " Here! " Fortunately for them, they didn't get hurt by the resulting flames, since his action was so obviously telegraphed, and he set fire to the room, exclaiming, " They'll all think the robots did it! " and took off continuing to do the same thing to the other parts of the building, smirking all the while at standing up for himself.

That all changed the minute he heard a little girl's scream. " Phoebe?! " he called out turning his head towards the building he had run out of. Of course, it wasn't really his and Fiona's daughter that he heard, but merely the voice of a girl who had to be brought with her parent to the gym on a school PA day. This immediately put him in a state of panic, making him feel as if he was threatening the life of his own little girl, and it frustrated him because he knew how illogical he was being and didn't want to care, but out of his control, he did. So he growled and hissed under his breath, " Oh goddamit! " humiliated as the fear started to overwhelm him and show in his expression, when he was trying to hide it by acting annoyed. He found himself running back into the burning building he had caused the state of it in the first place.

So in seconds, Scourge had gone from trying to burn down a building returning to his old ways, to getting a fire extinguisher and heroically saving it, putting out the fire in a green and black blur of sonic wind, and with every fire he put out, he felt like he accomplished something. In all the adrenaline, it never occurred to him to simply save the girl and her parent by taking them out of the building and letting it burn, and he had to rationalize his behavior away later as doing the smart thing; he would've never gotten away with letting it burn down, especially with witnesses left standing.

Just when he had gotten most of the fire extinguished and given everyone ample time to escape while fully aware of what he was doing to save them, some tiles from the ceiling broke off, and while most of them avoided hitting his head, one of them didn't, and the rest of them smacked into his arms while he was putting out a fire. He cried out in pain and fell before he even knew what hit him, fortunately just missing the fire itself and hitting the floor instead, and a part of him felt stupid for even trying to help, wondering if he had made a mistake. Everything faded to black in an instant.

Before he knew it, a second later from his perspective, he woke up in front of the gym with a headache and some firefighters nearby, who had picked up the slack and saved him. Lying on something flat on the grass, he growled in embarrassment at the very idea, grumbling, " I can't BELIEVE I had to be saved by someone. Why? " but when he tried to sit up, he groaned at the sharp pain in his right arm, grimacing at what happened.

" It's okay, it'll heal! " a familiar-sounding voice said, which belonged to the skunk Mobian who was suspicious of him before. He was completely stunned and confused, seeing some of the people he had threatened earlier looking sympathetic to him, including the little girl from earlier. They were calling him a hero, turning around on him because he proved them wrong in the end. His confusion was lessened when one of the bear Mobians said something that implied that, thanks to him putting out the fire, everyone had assumed that he never really intended to hurt them, and only gave them a scare to teach them a lesson, a lesson that they should appreciate him for his heroism after all.

" That was amazing! " Fiona called out to him getting his attention right away. Scourge was confused as she ran up to him and stopped in front of him, and he soon remembered that she had implied she wanted to come along earlier and must have gotten held up by something. With her wearing a purple and black bodysuit in the same style as her old one, she kissed him three times in a row, once on the cheek, and exclaimed, " You were so brave! " and hugged him after he finally sat up, slowly starting to enjoy the treatment. " Braver than Sonic? " he asked her, and she agreed with his arms around him, " Of course! " slightly just to humor him since she wasn't sure if bravery could be quantified. He would've been a lot more confused if she hadn't made it clear that she was impressed with his gutsiness, and not just liked that he had done something good.

Then she scolded him with her finger pointed to his face, " Don't get yourself hurt like that again! " despite being self-aware of the fact that she couldn't prevent that kind of thing from happening to him again with his dangerous lifestyle and lack of forethought. Scourge rolled his eyes at how she was nagging him like Alicia did, but with a smile because she still wasn't her, and was about as much of a gutsy thrill-seeker as he was rather than not understanding his lifestyle, and said,

" Why don't 'cha take me to the hospital? QUICKLY, so no one sees me needing help? I wanna look like a _blur_ to these people! " and reluctantly let her take him into her arms bridal style, trying to keep smiling in spite of the pain and how a part of him was seething at the idea that he would look vulnerable for even the slightest second. He told her in annoyance, " Make sure to let ME carry YOU a couple times, " making things more clear to her as she took off in a red and purple blur, all thanks to Scourge infusing chaos energy into her in the first place. She reassured him as she started running up to full speed, " Don't worry, hun, people are so impressed by what you did there that they won't even notice this. If anything, the fact that you put out the fire and got hurt just makes it even more awesome, 'cause it shows what a risk to yourself your action was. "

It was fortunate for the two of them that as a required secondary power, Fiona and Scourge could hear each other perfectly fine in the roaring sonic wind of Fiona running with him in her arms. As she ran along the sidewalks of the alternate Furville to avoid the cars, Scourge told her, " It was just an impulse. I didn't PLAN on it. " " You didn't? " she said in confusion. He explained, " These guys were being ungrateful jerks after I saved them from some robots because of how I look and stuff, so I wanted to just let 'em burn. But then the MINUTE I heard some screaming little girl, she reminded me of Pheebs. And I just, snapped. I-I, logically I could've just saved _her_ , but I guess I got carried away, I guess. Once I started putting the fires out, I couldn't stop. Maybe it was addictive, 'cause it was like one at a time accomplishing something. It feels weird being called a hero so much when that was the exact opposite of my plan. "

Fiona snarked, " I guess I shouldn't be so surprised that Sonic's evil twin tried to burn down a building, especially after what Anti-Knuckles had to deal with. Or whatever his new name is now. " She stopped in front of the doors to the hospital and carefully put him down so he was standing up, and he complained, " Hey, what's wrong? Those guys were total snobs! They thought just because I wear black leather and like smashing stuff, that they shouldn't respect me at all. I thought you knew better. " " I do! It's just that, ugh, well, I dunno, Scourge, I guess I just forgot how sensitive you can be to criticism. Who cares if they don't like you? You're an evil twin, that's what you live for, wasn't it? " Fiona responded in frustration feeling like he was immature, partially intimidated and worried.

" I'm more than just an evil knock-off, and you know it. Or I hope you do! Just because I'm from Moebius doesn't mean I won't want some appreciation and respect when I do something great! " he complained. " I know, I know! " Fiona replied backpedaling, getting irrationally scared of him some more with her abandonment issues and trust issues. That, and it was Scourge. She continued, " It's just confusing because, people all hated you in your own zone. And that didn't make you burn stuff. Right? Or at least do things besides burn stuff, was that why you did so many evil things, out of spite? But the only reason they'd hate you in the first place was if you were a criminal FIRST, it's the chicken and the egg I guess. "

Scourge clarified in annoyance, " It's because they're being ungrateful for something they should be thanking me more. That's all. And they turned around on me apparently, so whatever. It's not like I care what people think, it's just annoying to hear when they're jerks. " " Alright, I get it. But seriously, what came first? " Fiona replied, relieved to have ended the argument. Scourge sighed, and Fiona said awkwardly, " You just never talk about your childhood, so I was curious… " wary of him getting mad again. Intellectually, she knew he'd never hurt her, and if he ever did, he'd feel bad about it and wildly overcompensate for it, but there was still that feeling. To their surprise, Frost, the Film Noir Zone Tails, showed up flying towards them on an ice crystal, saying, " There you are! I expected you to come here, I heard what just happened on the news. " He landed and asked awkwardly, " Um, what are you guys talking about? "

Fiona replied, " How he got his start as a bad guy and how he feels about that reputation. If that's okay… " Seeing Fiona as having earned it for being his girlfriend long enough and proving her loyalty, Scourge reluctantly explained, " Well, thinking back to it… I got my start as a rebel by taking out the bullies back in grade school. I'd just jump at 'em and start whaling on 'em, one by one. So if you wanna hear a start to my ' antisocial behavior ' as they called it, it's there. They deserved it, obviously, and I was doing the right thing, giving bullies what they deserve. I wasn't beating up innocent kids for lunch money! I beat up the NOT innocent kids for that, instead. But people didn't respect me for that, and just saw me as this insanely violent jerk with a hair trigger temper, who'd fly into a rage at the mere mention of Father's Day, and I guess that's what led to me dropping out. Not only was school work and tests sucking, but I was unappreciated, people just acted like I was the new top bully and avoided me like the plague no matter what I said. " Scourge started to look and sound progressively more depressed and melancholic as time went on as he described how his reputation started. Fiona was fascinated, her eyes directly focused on him in curiosity, and she tried to hide her sympathy for him, since he was already defensive about being hurt.

He continued with calm unhappiness and bitterness, " Sure, I didn't like the pathetic geeks, but that didn't mean I wanted them to be scared of me. I was just a kid, of course, it's not like things are the same today. I mean, I didn't do anything to THEM! Unless they were jerks. So since I became a pariah over there, I dropped out. " He just avoided admitting to her that it had gotten to the point where the school was even trying to get him to see its school therapist, and give him anger management lessons and try to pry out of him why he was acting the way he was. The school was naturally suspicious of why he would come there with bruises and black eyes, but couldn't do anything against the world dictator that was his father, and he refused the supposed humiliation of getting any help. He would've never trusted a stranger wanting to learn about how he ticked.

He continued to complain, " And since my parents never bought me anything and I didn't wanna bust my ass at a job if I could even get one at my age, I started stealing, and I mainly targeted what looked like the biggest jerks. No one appreciated me for that, either. So if I couldn't shake the villain reputation, I might as well embrace it. Gets me a sort of respect that way, people are less likely to try to mess with me, or at least attack me outright, and I even got some free stuff! But here, when people actually respect me and think I'm a hero, they're never gonna do the stuff that my haters did like insult me behind my back or spit in my food. There are drawbacks to being seen as a ' bad guy, ' and I can't ignore that. And don't tell anyone I told you all this, okay? Especially not Sonic. "

Fiona smiled and said, " I promise, " thankful that he finally opened up to her, and they walked into the hospital at last. Frost surprised him and slightly embarrassed him by telling him, " I think you were trying to do the right thing, by fighting bullies. You were trying to be a hero to be badass and make some meaning out of your life, find a good way to get your frustration at your parents out. But since bullies and criminals were too small of a target compared to a guy like Robotnik, you went unappreciated. But you've got appreciation now! A lot of people respect you for what you're doing, regardless of why you're doing it. " Not sure how to respond to that, since he knew he couldn't get away with yelling at him and was too soft on him to do it, he simply said, " Yeah, yeah, fine. Don't tell anyone, " and thought, " At least it's less humiliating than ' I'm only me because my dad was a dick. ' "


End file.
